Sonic Eternal no Jutsu: Naruto
by theblackchaos737
Summary: After scouring the galaxy to find the demons and robots Eggman sent out to defeat, Sonic and his comrades crash land on a planet inhabited by ninja! They reunite with Ezi and join the chunin exams in order to find out the truth and escape the shinobi world, while befriending Naruto and the other rookie nine throughout the exams and fighting dangerous new enemies!
1. Scroll 1: Ninjas and Demons!

**A/N: Hello avid readers. I was feeling nostalgic and adventurous, so I decided to complete the Sonic Eternal series on here as much as I could (sorry to those who waited so long...). Anyway, I wrote this crap (but I love it) story a long time ago, but I wanted to post it and the adventures involved since I didn't finish most of the parts on Sonic Eternal series. The completed details of the crossovers up to this point are UNDER THIS CHAPTER, so if you want to see the timeline of Sonic's adventures so far you can review the timeline, but you don't have to read the other cross overs to enjoy this Sonic/Naruto crossover! Just keep in mind Inuyasha and Kingdom Hearts are apart of this story as well, but its mainly a Naruo/Sonic/OC crossover. Also, this story used to be first person, but I switched it to third person P.O.V. Enjoy!**

Sonic Eternal No Jutsu

Sonic, Tails, Knuckles and Amy have been on quite a few adventures. Their biggest issue used to be trying to return to their world, and on the way they met some interesting friends from other planets or different times. Their friend Ezi from earth helped them find the chaos emeralds, and they embarked on many journeys to return to Mobius. On the way to finding a portal, they met Inuyasha, a half-demon, and his friends: Miroku the monk, Sango the Demon Slayer, and Shippo the fox demon. After they use chaos control again, Sonic ends up on Destiny Island surrounded by water, where he and Ezi meet Sora and his friends. When Sonic is pulled into darkness by the heartless, Ezi joins Sora, aDonald and Goofy to travel to other worlds and they find Sonic together. More adventures happen throughout the years, and unfortunate death in Ezi's family causes her to send Sonic and his friends away back to Mobius. They had conflicts with Shadow and Rouge in the past, but now they are working together to stop Eggman and Naraku's evil scheme: Eggman is using his technology to send demons with shikon jewel shards, created by Naraku, to other worlds across the galaxy as a means to keep them distracted. Inuyasha, Kagome, Miroku, Sango and Shippo join Sonic and his friends (Rouge and Shadow included) to hunt the shards down and protect the worlds from the demon threat! But when they reach a large water-back planet, their ship the Blue Typhoon crash lands there into a deep forest!

Scroll 1: Demons and Ninjas

"Is everyone alright?" Tails let go of the clutch and quickly strapped himself out of his seat.

"Nice landing, fox boy!" Rouge commented from the back. Everyone was distorted from the ship's oblique landing.

"Hey, at least we're all okay." Knuckles struggled out of his seat as he tried to stand up straight. "Where are we?"

"This planet is stabilized with oxygen and hydrogen, just like our planet Mobius, or planet earth," Tails clicked a few buttons to scan the area. "I'm not seeing any life near us, though…"

"Well, we'll have to go in search for it then, won't we?" Sonic suggested.

After everyone had managed to hop out of the cockpit, they examined the tranquil green forest around them.

"It's so peaceful here." Kagome noticed.

Inuyasha sniffed the ground. "No doubt, this is a man made trail and I smell humans…"

"Interesting," Miroku mentioned, "I'm sensing an immense amount of dark aura nearby…"

"That must be the demon," Sango assumed, "come on, we better go take care of it."

"I'll stay here and take care of the ship, we need to figure out why we crash landed, but it may have something to do with the fact that the atmosphere here pulled us in like a strong magnet."

"Will you be able to fly the big spaceship again?" Shippo asked him.

"Well, I hope so… but until I figure out what's grounded us, I don't think I will be able to."

"Oh great, just great." Knuckles carped.

"Don't worry. In the meantime, you guys should take care of the demon Naraku sent to this world so that will be out of the way once I can pilot the ship again."

"Good idea. I'll stay by and protect the fox boy in case anyone disturbs us." Rouge volunteered.

"And Cream and I will stay here and help Tails!" Amy insisted.

"Okay then, let's go!" Sonic didn't hesitate to lead the heavy crowd into the forest.

The fighters stood on their guard, scanning the exotic world in bewilderment and wonder as to what lied before them.

"Why do you gotta lead?" Inuyasha snarled after a while of silence.

"Oh boy, here we go again." Shippo rolled his eyes.

"Because I'm faster and better than you." Sonic replied with a smirk.

"Whaddyah say, you blue rat?" Inuyasha snapped.

"You must need the wax cleaned out of those ears of yours, dog boy."

"My hearing's just fine!"

"Can you two bicker another time? Maybe when we're not wandering in unknown territory?" Kagome suggested.

Inuyasha's attention averted to the smell that was rising eastbound. "What is that? It smells good, like fresh food! Ick, but there's people too."

Hearing this, Knuckles took the initiative to climb the tallest tree beside them. "Whoa!"

"What is it, Knuckles?"

"There's a huge city up ahead! It's guarded by a giant wall…. But guess what's on its way to destroy it!"

"The demon! We have to hurry before it attacks that place!" Kagome hopped onto Inuyasha's back and he carried her, Shippo began to glide alongside Knuckles, Sango and Miroku rode Kirara and Sonic and Shadow zoomed ahead on the trail.

There were already people screaming and forces aligning on the wall to stop the demon. It was a huge, green beast with a round form and yellow eyes. It held a blue vest wrapped around it and its arms were long and coiled. The demon was bigger than the 75-foot wall that was embedded around the population.

***(Inuyasha OST 2: Fierce battle)

"It's attacking the north wall, let's surround it!" Miroku declared.

"Right!" Inuysha shuffled heavily across the gravel, sliding until he was behind the creature. Knuckles took aerial view and noticed Sango and Miroku doing the same across from him, perched upon the two tailed cat Kirara in her ferocious form.

As soon as Miroku threw his sutra, he noticed the barrier, the demon looked up at them, sneering.

***(Inuyasha Ost 1: Attack)

" _Pathetic mortals!"_ It's long arm extended towards them, nearly swiping at Kirara, who made a desperate cut to the right and barely making the dodge.

"Over here, yah useless rot!" Inuyasha wielded his giant Tetsaiga, and unleashed his Wind Scar attack on the demon right away.

It barely made a mark on the barrier, and the demon turned to the nuisance behind him.

"Uh oh," Kagome shrieked. Inuyasha picked her up and lunged out of the way before it's contorted arm could smash them.

"That was close! Huh?" Kagome noticed the arm of the demon as it pulled back into the barrier. "Hey, Inuyasha! I think I can hit the demon with my arrow when it tries to strike at us! It has to take its arms out of the safe barrier in order to attack us, I can hit him then!"

**(Fight to Death!)

"Its wortha try, but see if your arrow can pierce that barrier at all!"

Sonic was spinning across the barrier for a weak spot, only to be seen taunting the beast as it spun around trying to find him.

" _You damned fools! You and this village will be destroyed!"_ It threw its arms down on the wall, and the people that were on it scattered like flies.

 _Hmm, so these people aren't completely hopeless… they know how to move pretty well, like elites._ Shadow thought. He threw his Chaos spear in the direction of the shield, but once again, hardly a scratch was made. He dodged when the demon tried to swat him away.

"Damn it, what do we do? We can't break his barrier!" Inuyasha cursed.

Kagome had hopped off his back and attempted one more arrow shot. The arrow pierced through the barrier, but it bearly hit the demon's belly.

It chuckled at the contact, then switched its mood to anger and attempted to whack Kagome again.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha jumped in in enough time to pull her out of the way, but Inuyasha's back had been hit! The contact and heavy gust of wind that followed it blew Inuyasha and Kagome up into the air; they were sitting ducks as the demon prepared to hit them again with a fatal blow.

"Oh no, Inuyasha, Kagome!" Sango cried out. Everyone tried to fly in in enough time to circle the giant monster and save their friends, but they all knew they did not have the speed to do it.

One, however, managed to strike across the demon's shoulder blade, causing it's scheme to fail as it reverted back in pain.

"What? That piercing yellow light," Miroku speculated, "who was that?"

"The demon continued to weep in agony as it squeezed its arm to prevent the bleeding from oozing all over the place.

"Who…?"

***(Inuyasha opening theme)

The light was shining down across the figure standing atop the ruined wall. It blinded their eyes for a moment, but they did not falter to recognize who it was that had intervened.

"No way…" Knuckles realized. "It can't be!"

Even with the sober look upon his face, Sonic was the most shocked of them all. He attempted to compose himself, from anxiety and joy, as he noticed who it was.

"Long time no see, everyone."

Elizabeth Arts Leon, slid down from her pedestal of introduction and slid into action. She landed beside Knuckles, who was on the earth beside the wall.

"Ulp, E-Ezi!" He was flabbergasted.

"Knuckles, can you build a tunnel around the demon's feet by digging?"

"Oh, yeah, but—"

"Okay, get to it!" She leapt away and found herself before Kagome and Inuyasha..

"Ezi, it really is you!" Kagome seemed overjoyed.

"Humph, what the hell are you doing here now all of a sudden?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Kagome, when I say NOW, can you shoot your arrow at the demon again?"

"Oh, sure, but, why?"

"I'll explain later!" She raced across the other side of the demon, as it was distracted, and called Sango and Miroku down to her from the tree she perched on.

"Ezi, I'm so glad to see you!" Sango smiled.

"Lady Ezi, it's been far too long." Miroku agreed.

"Guys, listen. When I say NOW, you throw your sutras and Hirikotsu at the demon, got it?"

"Got it, but, Ezi—"

"No time to talk, just wait for my signal—Look OUT!" She, and the two sitting on the demon feline soared out of the way. Ezi flipped onto the dirt and slid away.

"You're awfully quick, now." Shadow commented on her abrupt skills. She turned around to face him, pausing for a moment. She couldn't help but recall that strange connection she and the life form possessed.

"Shadow… when I say NOW, use your Chaos Spear, ok?"

"Hmph."

"I'll take that as a yes." She scooted onward to her blue friend, who just finally landed in slight exhaust after spinning and zooming around the demon like a dying insect.

"There's no way you can be tired." Ezi pointed out blankly.

Sonic merely grinned back.

"When I say Now, use your Wind strike on that thing, okay?"

He nodded, and Ezi went back into action. She recoiled herself on the wall to be on higher ground, and whistled at the demon using her hand.

"Heyyy, over here!" The demon turned to her and chuckled.

 _"prepare to die!"_ It's long left arm struck out at her, and even though she dodged, its other arms came around and whacked her from the side, she had blocked with her hands, but she went flying into the dirt.

"Ezi!" Kagome shouted out in worry.

Ezi arose quickly and pulled out her Phantom Gem, the impossible wielding sword made of crystal rock, and began to climb the barrier. The demon struck at her again. This time, it whacked her forward, throwing her down directly in front of it. Ezi rolled into the dirt once, and as she continued to slide in the air, she seemed to have adjusted her weapon into an arrow! She positioned herself to make a shot at the demon.

"Now, KAGOME!" The crystal arrow shot out above the demon's arm and directly at its face.

Kagome's arrow shot out purity towards the demon,

Miroku's sutra stunned the demon into paralyzation,

Sango's hiraikotsu split through the demon's head,

Shadow's Spear attack whacked the demon,

Sonic's wind kept all the strikes in together,

And Inuyasha's Wind Scar cut into the demon's flesh.

The demon howled at was being destroyed by all the piercing attacks. When the light settled and the dust cleared, there was nothing left of it.

"All right!" Shippo turned into his normal, fox style. "We did it!"

Knuckles dug up and out from underneath the destroyed soil. "Phew… that was pretty tough.

After her impact with the demon, Ezi had been flung into a tree beside the entrance of the village. Sonic zoomed over and stretched his arm out to her.

"Thanks." She huffed as she got out of the smashed tree trunk.

Before anything else could be mentioned, they were surrounded. The group wore purple vested chest plates and they all has white and red animal masks that held their identities.

"I'm afraid you'll have to come with us." One of them ordered.

The heroes that saved the village were now suspects under arrest. It took Kagome a while to calm Inuyasha down, but eventually, they all accepted their arrest because Ezi told them to.

They were being escorted into the village by these police in masks. They were huddled together, like cattle, as they were lead to the main office in the central east side of the village.

"Oy, I hate it when the people stare…" Shippo said uneasily.

Kirara was growling in Sango's arms. "It's gonna be okay, Kirara." She hushed.

"This is ridiculous! Why are we being lead like criminals? We only saved these people's lives!" Inuyasha complained.

"Just keep quiet, guys," Ezi whispered to them, "I'll take care of everything and explain later."

Knuckles and Miroku exchanged glances at one another, as if to say they were

Shadow and Sonic were both speculating the people and the unusual round buildings that were surrounding them. Some of their clothes seemed normal, like aprons and turtle necked-shirts, and other wore traditional outfits like yukatas and kimonos.

"You seeing what I'm seeing, Shadow?"

"Yeah. This place is some other unusual human world."

The group was lead into the giant office in front of a huge mountain that had four faces carved into it. If anything, it reminded Ezi of Mount Rushmore back on earth.

They made their way up to the second floor and were sent into a vast room with blue-green carpeting and hefty candle light. There were people in green vests and wearing headbands lined up across the walkway, where the heroes were being lead to the chair and aged man sitting before them.

There were two men standing with their hands behind their back behind him, one with his face wrapped in bandages, and the other was shorter with his spiked hair pulled up into a pony tail. He had a scar across his nose.

"Welcome to our village." The man sitting down announced. The wrinkled features on his face held spots of age and his furrowed eyes seemed soft yet cautious. He wore a red hat on his head and was dressed in white robes.

"Hello, you must be the leader of the Leaf Village." Ezi spoke.

The group decided to listen between their conversation, since they were unsure about what was going on.

"Yes. I am Sarutobi, the third Hokage of the village Hidden in the Leaf. I would like to thank you for taking care of that monster that attacked our village today."

"Thank you, sir."

"You'll have to forgive our precautions. I required our black ops to bring you here specifically to know who you all are and how you are affiliated with that monster, and why you decided to save us from it."

"Seriously? You're going to start interrogating us after we saved you?" The half-demon yelled in irritation.

"Inuyasha, quiet!" Kagome retorted.

"It's alright," Sarutobi replied, "I understand you're upset. It was harsh of us to arrest you on the spot, however for the safety of our village I need to know who you all are."

"Of course… We happened to be in the area when the demon attacked, but are specialized in taking care of giant monsters."

"Is that so? Then, you are not shinobi?"

"We are. In our ninja village, we are trained to battle heavy monsters such as the one today. There are a few rare amount of creatures like these, yes, but we would always like to be prepared. We are, however, a little rusty concerning the skill level of shinobi in the world of today."

"What does that mean? What village are you from?" The ponytailed man demanded.

"Patience, Iruka," Sarutobi addressed him, "I am sure she will explain in just a moment, miss..?"

"Ezi, sir. I am the Ambassador for the village Hidden in the Sun, and these are my comrades: shinobi, like me, who wish to join in on the chunin exams this year."

This caused a stir in the people around the room, whispering and speaking out loud in confusion.

Sonic and the others were just as confused, but Sonic smirked all the same, finding this interesting; Ezi was coming up with a story for them, so they would fit into this world.

"Calm down everybody," Sarutobi settled them, "You can see we're all a little confused. Are you all part of a new village, like the village hidden in the Sound?"

"No, we've been hidden for a long time. Our leader, the Harekage, is going against tradition and wants us to make peace with the other villages. You must understand: In our history, we were small group and had nothing to show or give to the other nations, so we kept ourselves hidden. Hidden from war, and anyone who might want to take over our small home. But our way of life is dying. We have decided to join the treaty with the other nations and be at peace with all of you."

"I see…" Sarutobi speculated the girl for a long moment. "You do realize much more detailed negotiations will need to be at work here, correct? It will take more than just an ambassador to appear in order for us to create a treaty."

"I know, but to begin our trust in separate villages, we would like to be a part of the exams."

"Hmmm…" Sarutobi pondered.

"Hokage-sama, we cannot trust them! For all we know they could be plotting an attack on the village!" Iruka exclaimed.

"Iruka, I understand your concern for the village, however we cannot discriminate against this village. They did save us, after all, and it would be in our best interest to try and negotiate peace rather than pointing fingers at a village that so far has done nothing but committed acts of respect towards us."

"Then, it is alright if we join the exams?" She asked hopefully.

"Yes. However, I will expect to meet the Harekage soon: if any of you should make it to the final round, then it will be a customary gesture that the Harekage joined the event in the midst of our leaf village."

"Yes, he is looking forward to it."

"Then, good luck in the chunin exams, and you will be lead to your hotel rooms near the arena."

Ezi bowed slightly. "Thank you very much, Hokage."

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~…..~

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"Will somebody PLEASE tell me what the hell is going on now?" Inuyasha spoke out the moment Knuckles had closed the door behind all of them in the hotel room.

"Yeah, what's going on, Ezi?" Sonic asked. Everyone settled around their friend while she began to explain the details.

"Okay, I'm guessing you guys were pulled onto this planet too, right?"

"Yes, Tails's ship crash landed here. But we were coming here to stop the demon Naraku sent." Sango enlightened.

"Well, _we_ crash landed here too, about a week ago, and I have been gathering information about this world from this village."

"Who is 'we'?" Shippo asked.

"I landed here on the Gummi ship, with Sora, Donald, Goofy, and Cloud Strife. We were pulled in to this world and now Donald can't seem to get it off the ground."

"So, Ezi, what is this place? What were all those things you were saying to the leader of this world?" Asked Sango.

"That man Sarutobi is the leader, or the Hokage, of the village hidden in the Leaf, which is where we are now. There are other villages, like in the desert, and rain, and snow countries of this world. But for some reason, we got pulled into this area of the world. This world 's militia seems to be entirely made up of shinobi."

"Shinobi? You mean, like samurai?"

"No, Shippo. Shinobi, like Ninja."

"What? You're telling me ninja rule this place?" Knuckles bellowed.

"They're not like the ninja you are familiar with, Inuyasha, but they are the same thing. Shinobi use their life force called chakra to create their own justsus. Justsus are almost like magic, and they can create fire or water attacks using their chakra, or any other elements they train themselves to control. It's a long story, but basically ninja are very sharp and can be very dangerous."

"Do you know why we all got sent into this unusual world?"

"Well, Knuckles, I tried searching the answer here and through meditating."

"You meditate now, Lady Ezi?" Miroku asked surprised.

"It was part of my training, yes. But anyway, low and behold guess who I am able to talk to through the Black chaos emerald… she was able to tell me what we needed to do."

"No way, Tikal?"

"That's right. Tikal spoke to me, and she told me we would be able to go home if at least one of us was victorious in the chunin exams they are holding here."

Knuckles scoffed. "Why would Tikal talk to you? You're not her ancestor."

"Jealous, much?" Shippo commented.

"I think it is because she gave me the black chaos emerald." She smiled. "But you can do the talking to her form now on Knuckles, since you're here."

"What's a chunin exam?" Kagome asked.

"There are levels of ninja mastery, from what I know the categories are genin (beginning), chunin (the intermediate level) and jonin (the highest level for normal shinobi). The chunin exams are always held in this village, but they are for neighboring villages to join in as well. Ninja from all over gather around to participate and their skills are challenged in three courses. Whichever team can complete all three parts of the exams will be the victors."

"Why would we have to join these exams just to leave this world? What did Tikal mean by that?"

"I don't really know yet, Knuckles, but I do now it's our only shot. The exams are in one day and the people that enroll must be on a three person team."

"So, let's do this thing! Let's enroll and kick some ninja ass so we can get out of here!" Inuyasha declared.

"There is more, Inuyasha," Ezi continued, "We cannot let anyone know that you guys are demons. It could make things more complicated than they need to be."

"We can do that, easy! Inuyasha will just have to hide his ears."

"Also, I don't think a few of us should enter the exams."

"What. Why not?" Kagome pressed. "The more we enter from our gang, the more of a chance we have to win the exams!"

"Yes, that's true, but like I said these exams are meant for shinobi to go into the next level. None of us are shinobi, and I'm not demeaning your skills as fighters, but battling against these humans will be more complicated than fighting against demons. They're fast, malicious killers and they won't hesitate to use their tracking and training skills on you."

"Ezi is right," Miroku added, "even with the skills some of us possess, they will not be useful here." He raised his hand. "I withdraw from the exams."

"What? Miroku, so quickly?" Sango carped.

"That is a good idea." Ezi told him. "Kagome, Shippo, Amy and Tails should not join either."

"Why not me?" Kagome asked irritably.

"Kagome, your bow and arrow is useful against purifying demons, but these are people with training beyond any of your own skills. Putting you in the exams would be like putting a cheerleader in a football game."

"No offense, but if Kagome isn't suitable what makes you think you are?" Inuyasha demanded. "You're pretty good with that sword now, but you don't have skills like some of us do."

"Of course she does," Sonic answered before Ezi could, "didn't you see her against that demon? She was doing tricks and flips I have never seen her do before."

"So, you have been… training, the past 6 months you were gone?" Shadow assumed.

"Yes, and I must say, no offense, that I am probably the most elite one in here when it comes to pretending to be a shinobi."

"Hmph." Inuyasha could not help but scowl with his arms folded. "Try not to brag too much."

"Donald is making headbands with our "village" symbol on them. Ninja wear headbands not only for their protection but to represent where they are from. If anyone asks, we're from a village that has been hidden from war and famine and we specialize in demon hunting above all."

"Nice cover up." Knuckles nodded. "I must say, you have things set up here very professionally for only having been here one week."

"We had to figure out how to get off this world, and it looks like this is the only way. Are you guys in?"

"Do we really have a choice?" Miroku chirped. "How are you all going to decide the teams?"

"We'll draw from a jar and decide from there, but you all are probably tired from today. You should read up on the some of the history and ninjutsu used here and rest in the hotel rooms."

"Sounds good, I could use a bath." Kagome said while stretching.

"I'm gonna head back to the ship and tell Tails what's going on." Sonic headed for the door.

"Let me go with you, and I'll take you to the Gummi ship as well." Ezi told him. "By the way, it is totally fine if you guys want to look around the village, just travel in pairs and try not to look suspicious."

"We're a bunch of anthropomorphic aliens and demons; I don't think we can not be suspicious." Mumbled Shadow.

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~…..~

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Sonic and Elizabeth were the first to leave the hotel, and they were also the first to be greeted by the locals.

Ezi noticed all the stares first, but Sonic seemed to be purposefully looking forward with a grin of mischief and pride.

"Sonic…"

"Ezi, who trained you all this time you were away from us?"

"Well, its sort of a long story…"

"Oh, hello."

The two turned their attention to the man that had crossed their path. His round spectacles reflected his dark eyes, and for being as young as he was he had long grey hair that was pulled back. He wore a leaf village headband and bright purple attire.

"Um, hi." Ezi decided to respond .

"I saw what you did for our village today, and I wanted to personally thank you."

"Oh, you're welcome. Taking out monsters is our specialty."

"Is it now? I'm in the medical core, so I wouldn't know too much about that… although I am a shinobi, I don't think my skills would be good for something like that."

"You're a ninja? Are you entering the chunin exams coming up?"

"I am, with my two team mates. I'm Kabuto Yakushi, by the way."

"I'm Ezi, and this is…"

"Sonic. Pleased to meet yeah, Kabuto."

"The pleasure's all mine. Forgive my analysis, but there aren't very many people that look like you and your friends around here, Sonic-kun."

"I get that a lot."

"Well, what are you all up to right now?"

"Oh… we were just going to have a look around the village and get acquainted to its atmosphere." Ezi enlightened, trying not to reveal they were returning to their spaceship in the forest.

"How about if I give you all the grand tour? It's the least I could do since you protected our precious village."

"Oh, thank you for the offer, but we are just going to go collect some of our friends while we take a quick look around; then we'll turn in for the day."

"Oh, are you sure? I really don't mind helping you guys out. It's the least I could do."

"No, it's okay, really. But uh, thank you again, Kabuto—we'll see you at the chunin exams, yes?"

"I'm looking forward to it." The medical shinobi bowed and then vanished into a puff of smoke.

"Whoa…" Sonic tried not to look surprised.

"Its some jutsu he used to transform into a different place. It was a little startling for me when I saw their techniques myself at first too."

"Heh-heh," Sonic couldn't help but smirk. "This place just gets more and more interesting! I can't wait to battle it out against these guys in the exams tomorrow!"

Ezi only stared at him. _Its really good to see you again, Sonic…_

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TO BE CONTINUED

A/N: So, here's the dealio:

I created Sonic eternal a looong time ago. Ezi is the OC that travels with Sonic and the others in their crossovers, which are other stories I published in the order of Sonic meeting them. I may or may not complete these or redo these crossover I already have posted (Sonic X, Kingdom Hearts, Inuyasha). If I did redo them it would most likely be the Kingdom Hearts one, that's it. **I did not post all of the Sonic Eternal stories on fanfic, or I did not complete them (sorry),** so here's the timeline and brief details for clarification:

The Sonic Eternal Story so far (Timeline):

 **Sonic X crossover (Multiple crossovers):** Ezi is from our planet, earth. She ends up in Chris Thorndike's world. She travels with Sonic and makes friends with everyone in search of the emeralds to them get to Mobius, and for her to return to Earth. Basically, the adventures go up to episode 53/54, when Sonic finally is able to leave Chris's world. After this, instead of getting home, they end up on earth, in Ezi's world, and she helps them find the chaos emeralds. They go on many adventures on planet earth, such as saving a school being held hostage by Eggman, and discovering the Dreamers. _Dreamers_ are people that can see into other worlds, such as the man who created the Sonic games and supposedly created Sonic and NiGHTS, who also appears in their adventures. Other adventures include crossovers, such as **Xiaolin Showdown, Yu-Gi-Oh, and Jackie Chan Adventures.** A main event that happens here is when Ezi gets a crystal necklace, and a crystal sword she can barely use, accidentally awakening Aritob, who will become a terrible threat to Sonic and friends later on. (Note: The cast of Sonic characters mainly just consists of Sonic, Tails, Amy, Knuckles, Rouge, Shadow and Eggman at this point).

 **Kingdom Hearts 1/ Sonic crossover:** (Note: for the sake of SE world building, Kingdom Hearts is filled with Disney worlds because Walt Disney and other authors from earth were Dreamers, or people who could see into other worlds, so the entire KH worlds are seen as planets in a galaxy different from Sonic's galaxy or Ezi's galaxy, the Milky Way. Sonic is in Ezi's world, earth, when they create chaos control again after defeating Perfect Chaos (again), and going on some adventures. The chaos control brings Ezi and Sonic to an Island called destiny island, instead of Sonic's world, Mobius. They befriend Sora, Kairi and Riku, who are planning on using a raft to leave the island, and as much as Sonic hates water, he knows they have to travel them. The night before they depart, the island is attacked by shadowy creatures! Sonic is pulled into darkness, and Ezi is pulled with Sora to a different world called Traverse Town. With the help of Donald and Goofy, they travel in the first Kingdom Hearts game together to find their missing friends. On the journey, Tikal appears and gives Ezi an eighth black emerald to hide it from the darkness, claiming her heart is pure enough to contain its power, even though she's not a princess of heart since she's not from these worlds. When they defeat Ansem in the End of the World, Ezi leaves in a portal that will take her back to her home on earth, hoping the others will appear.

 **Inuyasha/Sonic crossover:** After months, there is no sign of Sonic and Ezi goes back to a normal life. Then, Shadow appears and tries to kill Ezi! Sonic and friends saves the day, and they explain they have been gone is beause they tried to use a portal locator to get home this time instead of chaos control, since a portal appears to be how they got stuck on earth in the first place. They work together to find the right portal to send them home, and Tails' device lands them to a well owned by the Higurashi residence. They travel down the well, only to find it is a timr portal, sending them 500 years into the past, where they meet Inuyasha and the gang. They work together to return to the present time and help stop Naraku, befriending Inuyasha and the others.

 **SonicXEarth crossover: Sonic turned human?!**

So after they return to the present, they accidentally bring Inuyasha and his comrades, since the Sorceress Kega traps them there, thinking they are the enemy. They cannot break Kega's seal without the emeralds, so they embark on a journey where they meet other animals from Sonic's world, to find them. They meet the green hedgehog Nitro and his creator, Spat the Rat, who the main villains in this part of the story. They also meet Maxwell the Dog and Rose the Cat. At this time Spat turns everyone into a human as part of his experiments! And to stay undercover they enroll in Ezi's school, having fun and living a normal human lives. The rolls reverse at some point, and when they find the cure it works on the humans too, making Ezi, and Inuyasha and his friend turn into Sonic-like animal characters!

As more adventures ensue, Aritob reappears, trying to get his crystal sword back (which at this point, Ezi is better at using, fighting heartless and demons with it, but she's not a great fighter). He uses Ezi as bate, blaming Sonic for taking his crystal sword away, and uses his evil magical powers to threaten the team. He even curses Shadow and turns him into his ferocious pet dragon,(which is a major event: Sonic has to turn into Super Sonic to save and defeat him). Eventually, Sonic defeats Aritob with the help of Nitro, and Spat who turn everyone back to normal, But, Nitro sacrifices himself to cast Aritob out of the planet using a powerful chaos control instead of sending everyone home, but at least it breaks the Sorceress' barrier and Inuyasha and friends can return home.

 **Sonic X Crossover 2 (Multiple crossovers):**

Tails is about to give up. Even though they collected all 7 emeralds, he doesn't think the chaos control will take them back to Mobius, since it hasn't so far. Ezi volunteers to use the black emerald in her heart (The one Tikal passed down to her in Kingdom Hearts). It works and they return home with Ezi! They go some Archie Comics Sonic adventures, like finding Knuckles' Tribe and Sonic searches for the underground Knothole to find Sally, whose been gone with the hidden kingdom for years, making Amy jealous. Sally gets a message to Sonic saying she cannot return, in fear Eggman will find them and conquer it again. Ezi learns she can travel back and forth form her world to Mobius using the black emerald. Then, the adventure of 18 year old Chris and Cosmo from Sonic X the Metatrex Saga. Between the episodes of that, Sonic and the others embark on many other planets from other crossovers, such **as Star Fox Adventures (Dinosaur Planet), Jak and Daxter, Metroid Prime and Billy Hatcher, and Final Fantasy 7.**

After the Matarex Saga, they say goodbye to Chris and Cosmo passes away. They embark on more adventures, even reuniting with old faces such as Inuyasha and Sora form Kingdom Hearts, to stop the Heartless from invading world and finding the key hole! By this time, its been years since Ezi first met Sonic and the others, and she's graduating from Jr. high. Cloud appears to warn them Sephiroth is coming for something he doesn't know what. An epic battle between them ensues on the day of Ezi's graduation at her school, and Super Sonic helps, and they defeat Sephiroth (even though Cloud thinks it was a clone, it was an epic victory). However, after the graduation Ezi returns home to find her step brother Luke has been killed by someone. She is so depressed, but she comes up with a new goal in the waking of his death, and asks Sonic and the others to leave Earth, and to not return until she found them again.

 **Sonic/Naruto Crossover:**

Though they promised not to return by courtesy of Ezi's wishes, Kagome contacts Tails. She warns them they have seen Eggman in the feudal era, so Sonic and Tails and the gang go to investigate. It turns out Naraku and Eggman have joined forces! The villains monologue their evil plan, which is to distract Inuyasha and Sonic's teams by sending them on wild goose chase so they can work on their evil schemes. Eggman creates multiple portals that scatter some of Naraku's jewel shards across the universe to different worlds and planets! Inuyasha and his friends join Sonic and the others in the Blue Typhoon spaceship, and they travel space together to get the shards back from menacing aliens/creatures that have been corrupted by there power! (Also, Naraku sent strong demon with the shards to protect them). They are successful on their journey, until the Blue Typhoon is pulled into an unknown planet's atmosphere containing a shikon jewel shard, and they crash on a planet whose inhabitants are filled with ninjas!...

 **More to come! Review and I hope you enjoyed it!**


	2. Scroll 2: Enter Naruto Uzumaki!

BC737: Hello! More interactions with Naruto and his pals in this one! Again, this was written a while ago, but the chunin exams were my favorite parts of Naruto. It had to be included in Sonic Eternal! Enjoy!

Scroll 2: Enter Naruto Uzumaki

The boy felt nostalgia. He had seen a giant monster attacking his village before, and yet he could not recall exactly how or when. It did allow him to recollect the story of the nine tails, a powerful demon that attacked Konoha 13 years ago… The one that was sealed inside him now.

"What should I do?" He thought out loud, but he could not do anything. This monster was going to harm his village and he was scared stunned and unable to do anything.

Naruto was scrawny, but he had a lot of spirit. He had bright yellow hair, bright blue eyes, and wore a bright orange jumpsuit.

"M-my team! I've got to make sure Sakura is alright!" He dashed stealthily through the panicked village. People were screaming and running opposite from the north wall where the giant fiend had knocked through the barrier; the expert jonin were headed towards the chaos, along with the Anbu Black ops.

"Naruto!" One of the jonin called out. "What are you doing here, it's too dangerous!"

"Iruka Sensei," Naruto addressed the older shinobi, "I'm not gonna run away, I have to find my team!"

"They're fine, but you won't be if you stay here! That demon's coming through-"

A bright light interrupted all their thoughts and they squeezed their eyes shut until the blast subsided. The demon was gone when they speculated the wall.

"What? Iruka Sensei, what happened?"

"I… I don't know. But I'm gonna find out."

"Iruka!" At that moment, the beautiful green beast of the hidden leaf approached the two from the wreckage.

"Guy, what's going on?" Iruka demanded.

"I just got word from the Anbu. Some unknown group from outside the village took out the demon!"

"What? Where are they now?"

"The Anbu have taken them into custody, and Sarutobi wants you to be there when he interrogates them."

"The Hokage is doing the interrogating on his own? Why not send in a Yamanaka?"

"He doesn't want to antagonize them, they've only just saved our village; it would cause some trouble on our part if we started investigating them as if they were criminals."

"They just took out a whole demon! You want to tell me that's not suspicious enough?"

"Iruka, just do as the Hokage says!"

"Hmph," Iruka straightened himself up. "I'm on my way. Naruto, stay clear of the wall."

"But-!"

"That's an order, Naruto! Go home." The Two jonin vanished and Naruto was left to grumble.

"Stinkin' Iruka! Even after I came back from defeating criminals like Zabuza and Haku, he still treats me like a kid!"

Despite his agonizing curiosity of the situation, Naruto decided to return to the training grounds, but he was being followed….

"Konohamaru! That disguise is terrible, it doesn't even match the pattern on the floor!" Naruto chided at the box that was slinking behind him.

"You saw through my disguise! Very clever, boss!" Konohamaru popped up from the box, introducing himself to the scene. He and his comrades began conversing with Naruto on tips and how hard they had been training. Despite being a miscreant himself, Naruto had taken Konohamaru and his squad under his wing, and shown him the few things he had learned from his own sensei.

"There you are!" Sakura Haruno chided. She approached Naruto's teaching lesson from behind.

Naruto's heart raced in his chest. "S-Sakura! W-what's up? Come to ask me out on a date finally?"  
Sakura scoffed. She had long, bright pink hair and wore a red kilt with white patterns aligned. "I don't care about that! Did you see the demon fight?"

"I did—"

"Hey, boss, check this out!" Konohamaru transformed into a sexy woman with brown hair and no clothes. Sakura was on Naruto's team, and was aware of his inappropriate antics; yet she could not tolerate that this younger child was behaving such as an older pervert would.

"Naruto!" She scolded. She punched him so hard he went flying and flew into a white picket fence. He had often fantasized about Sakura touching him, but not in this way.

His face was bloody when he arose. He was so dizzy, he could barely anticipate the sand ninja that were crossing their path.

"Hey! Watch where you're going!" Naruto could hear Konohamaru yelling at the two sound ninja who had rudely pushed him aside.

The male sound ninja didn't hesitate to react. He picked up Konohamaru by the front of his shirt like a rag doll. The child was choking.

"Say that again, you little brat!" The sand ninja demanded, but Konohamaru could not muster the will to respond, due to lack of air.

"Stop it!" His teammates cried.

"Y-yeah, let him go!" Sakura demanded, but the sand ninja did not falter.

"You leaf ninja brats!" The bully exclaimed. "You think you own this land, but really, you are all cowards."

The female sand ninja scoffed. She had four ponytails and a giant fan on her back. "Kankuro, let them be, we don't have time for this!"

"No way, I wanna teach this punk a lesson!" He squeezed the shirt tighter, and Konohamaru was kicking the air at his feet.

A rock was thrown, and it hit the sand ninja's hand so hard, he dropped the child.

"Sasuke!" Sakura declared, dreamily.

The third squad member of Naruto's team was sitting on a tree branch above them.

Sasuke Uchiha was anything but normal, with attractive sharp looks, pale skin, ebony spiked hair, and a blue collared shirt. He was the only Uchiha in the village, and he was more than popular among the woman in his class; partly for his looks, and partly for the fact he was top of his class in skill.

"Oh, great." Naruto grumbled. He had more than a few brawls with Sasuke Uchiha, in which they put their ninja skills to the test. But, more importantly, Naruto attempted to show he was just as miraculous as his teammate. Attempted.

Sasuke leaned against the trunk, resting horizontally against the branch.

 _Sheesh! He thinks he's so cool_! Naruto folded his arms in disgust. Even the girl on Konohamaru's team was crushing over him.

"Who the hell do you think you are?" Konkuro, the sand ninja, demanded.

"I think you ought to put him down." He said, coolly.

"Y-yeah! What he said!" Sakura added.

Kankuro scoffed. "As if I'm gonna let some-!"

An arrow zinged through and sliced the front of Kankuro's hand.

"What-?" Naruto looked behind him to see two other figures approaching.

"Man, what's with this place? Do ninjas really fight for no reason?" The one that spoke proudly was a small, maybe 3 foot, blue spiked rodent with red shoes.

"Leave the kid be." The taller, serious girl said beside him.

"Well, it's not as if we wanted the brat to cause us trouble!" The female sand ninja protested.

"Kankuro, Temari."

Everyone's eyes shot up to the person standing upside down beside Sauske Uchiha. Naruto was slightly amused, because even Sauske seemed to have not noticed the boy standing behind him, who was addressing the two sand ninja causing the conflict.

"…That's enough." He continued. He had fiery hair and a gourd on his back. It was mystery as to how he could carry something that appeared so heavy and stand upside down with his chakra.

"G-Gaara!" Kankuro seemed to be nervous at the boy's appearance, more than anyone else's who had appeared so far. "W-we were just leaving!"

"Good, let's go." The supposed 'Gaara' disappeared in a gust of sand, as did the other two sand ninja.

Konohamaru was aided by his two teammates, and after a brief conversation with Naruto, they left as well.

"Sasuke! Thanks for saving us!" Sakura said cheerily.

"Whaddyah mean? I didn't do anything." He shrugged. He climbed down from the tree with a simple jump onto the dirt. He placed his hands in his pockets. "Still, that sand ninja seemed dangerous… I didn't even notice him behind me."

The blue spiked rodent and the girl approached.

"Hey!" It said. Naruto squinted as he analyzed the strange, anthropomorphic creature.

"What the heck are you?" Naruto tilted his head back and forth as he observed.

"Idiot!" Sakura whacked him over his head. "They saved the village! Show some respect!"

Naruto's eyes widened. "Y-you two did?"

"Us and our homies." It explained, tauntingly.

"Who are you two?" Sasuke demanded.

"Sasuke, try to be more polite!" Sakura chided.

"I'm Sonic. This ball-of-sunshine beside me is Ezi." The rodent explained.

The girl nodded. "Nice to meet you."

"T-thanks for helping us!" Sakura insisted. Naruto realized that these people-or things- had protected his beloved Konoha, so he took great interest in them immediately.

"These two? Wow, you must be really good shinobi, like me! I'm Naruto Uzumaki, soon to be Hokage!"

Sakura and Sasuke were unamused; this was more than a few times they had heard this declaration from their obnoxious comrade.

"Hokage, huh? That's the leader role, right?" The blue thing asked. "That's a big dream yeah got there, kid."

"Don't encourage him." Sakura grumbled. "So, you all stopped the demon? Thank you so much!"

"It was nothing." The girl Ezi said.

"Why did you bother to aid a village you owe nothing to?" Sasuke asked sharply.

"Sasuke!" Sakura said again.

"It's okay, it's a reasonable question." Ezi said. "We're demon slayers, so when we saw your village was in trouble, we did what were trained to do."

"I see."

"D-demon slayers?" Naruto's heart began to race. The burning fire that was the fox demon inside of him seemed tense. He chuckled nervously. "D-do you all just hunt demons for sport then, or..?"

Sonic and Ezi exchanged looks. "Well, we don't just go around hunting them, we only try to stop them if they're causing trouble."

"Yeah, we don't go attacking monsters just because they look, _monstery"._ Sonic explained. "I mean, look at me! I can't judge off of appearance."

Naruto smiled. He _was_ different, and this allowed him to cool down. "Cool! So what are you exactly anyway?"

"Naruto! You can't just go asking someone that!" Sakura chided.

"It's cool, this isn't my first rodeo." Sonic began. "I'm a hedgehog, can't you tell?"

"No! But now that you said it…" Naruto stroked his chin. "Nah, I don't see it!"

"Heh, I like this kid. He's honest." He chuckled. "'Bet you've never seen anything like me before, huh?"

"I've seen worse." Sasuke put his hands in his pockets. "We didn't need your help, by the way. I could handle those sand ninja any day."

"Oh, right… you did seem to have things under control with that pebble of yours." Ezi replied, mockingly.

"Hey, ignore stupid Sasuke! Thanks for helping us out back there!" Naruto declared.

"I don't get why someone would come into somebody else's village and cause trouble." Ezi said.

"Right? What a bunch of creeps!" Sakura agreed. "So, are you joining the exams?"

"That's right." Ezi nodded. "So Sakura, Naruto the leader… and Sasuke. Nice to meet you all."

"He's no leader yet." Sasuke squinted his dark eyes. "Pretty convenient you all knew how to stop that monster that attacked, if you ask me."

"I wasn't asking you." Ezi retorted.

"Alright! Someone else who doesn't like Sasuke!" Naruto cheered. He raised his hand up for an hi-five. The notion caught Ezi off guard and she chuckled, slapping his hand anyway.

"Heh, I take it you too don't get along?" Sonic guessed.

"He's my rival!" Naruto exclaimed.

"Idiot. You don't just proclaim stupid titles like that." Sasuke chided.

Naruto ignored him. "So, you guys really took out that demon? That's really impressive! I've had some experience handling monsters myself!" Naruto rubbed the bottom of his nose proudly.

"Really?" Sonic pressed. "What kinds of monsters?"

"Oh—well, you know, there's this and that…"

"Forgive Naruto, he tries to act cool sometimes when he's totally not." Sakura abridged.

"Heyy, why do you have to be so mean to me, Sakura?" Naruto whined.

"So, are you three joining the chunin exams, too?" Sonic asked.

"Of course! It's just one of the few steps I need to become Hokage!"

Ezi chuckled. "Well, I'm glad you're so enthusiastic. Hey, I know we'll be on different teams, but, good luck."

"Thanks! You guys too! Where are you going now, Sonic? You should try the village's Ichiraku Ramen here! Its major delicious!"

"Oh yeah, I feel like we owe you lunch or something for helping us out back there." Sakura insisted.

"Does this place have chili dogs?"

Naruto blinked. "Hm? What's a chilidog? You eat dogs where you're from?"

"Heh, no, kid. Never mind." Sonic shrugged. "Well, I'd love to get some grub, but we gotta go meet our other teammates from our village first. Maybe next time though!"

"Yes, thank you for the offer." Ezi added.

"Hey, mind if I go on ahead?" Sonic asked her.

"Of course not. You know where they are now; go 'head."

"Cool!" He waved to Naruto. "Hope to see you at the exams, guys! Gotta go!"

"Later, Sonic!" Naruto waved, and suddenly, the wind picked up and the incredibly fast hedgehog left a blue streak behind him.

Sasuke gasped.

"W-whoa!" Sakura attempted to keep the drapery on her clothes from lifting up from the high winds.

"Wow! He's superfast!" Naruto was thrilled, but also shocked. This was the type of competition he was going to be facing in the exams?

"Yeah, he likes to show off." Ezi grinned.

"What's your skill?" Sasuke asked.

"Ah, ah, ah, I'm not telling. You can find out on the exams, if need be."

"Ezi, you and Sonic are cool!" Naruto complimented. "Almost as cool as me!"

"I'm glad you think so." She chuckled. "Well, it was nice meeting you all, good luck again, and we'll probably see each other there too."

"Yeah!" Naruto watched Ezi continue down the dirt road. "See you!"

"They seem nice." Sakura noted.

"Yeah, too nice." Sasuke added.

"What do you mean? They did save our village!" Sakura said. "But, I suppose if you're suspicious of them, Sasuke, I will be too!"

"You'll agree with anything he says!" Naruto carped. He folded his arms and pouted his lip. "Hmph! Well I like 'em! That Sonic guy is interesting!"

"You just met him, idiot." Sasuke chided. "Anyway, he's inhumanly fast. We'll have to be careful of that."

"Why? It's not like we didn't just make friends with him or anything!"

"You really are an idiot!" Sakura put her hands on her hips. "Just because they were friendly and helped us now, doesn't mean they will be if we have to face them in the chunin exams!"

"Aw, how lame!"

"Well, at least we know a little about what we're up against." Sasuke said thoughtfully. "And that sand ninja too… I didn't even notice him until he spoke."

"Heh! Looks like we've got some interesting competition!" Naruto held his fist in the air. "'Nothin' the great Naruto Uzumaki can't handle! I'm ready for anything!"

"Yeah, it looks like things are going to be tense once these exams start." Sakura analyzed. "W-we should get going-"

"SAKURA! Let's you and me go out on a date and eat ramen!" Naruto declared.

"As if!" She flipped her long, pink hair. "I'm too busy for that!" As Sasuke began to walk, she followed behind him. "Hey Sasuke! You want to go get some food? I thought maybe it could be like a date?"

"Get serious. You should be more focused for the exams and think about training. You are a shinobi, after all."

"Oh, r-right! Then let's go train together…" Naruto watched as his comrades walked off. It was getting late.

They weren't always in disagreement like this, but it was a common theme for him and Sasuke to be challenging one another with something new. If they hadn't had their mix of rivalry and team work, though, they would have never passed their sensei's test, or learned how to walk on trees, or defeated the deadly rogue ninja, Zabuza. He mused with the events of the day, and he pondered them with excitement for the exams to come as he returned to his lonely home.

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~...~

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Ezi and Sonic headed down to the lobby of the hotel inn they were 'staying' at. Ezi was going to show him where the gummi ship had crash landed in the forest, many miles away from the hidden leaf village they were currently in.

The people whispered and stared by as they walked casually through.

A puff of white smoke erupted in front of them, and they stepped back, prepared for whatever was blocking them from the front exit.

A man appeared from the smoke. His face was partly covered by a blue cloth, and he had spikey grey hair that stood straight up over his head band. He had a vest on, like the other elite ninja, and Ezi recognized him from the line-up of shinobi from the Hokage's throne room.

"Ah, there you are." He said, cheerily. Despite the covered face, his one eye seemed gentle.

"You ninja sure like popping up out of nowhere like that." Sonic noted, referring to the Anbu as well.

"I didn't mean to startle you. Aren't you all aware of simple ninjutsu skills?"

"Yes, but our village is old fashioned." Ezi explained. "In training to fight monsters, the samurai route is what are traditions are more accustomed to. I'm Ezi, and this is Sonic, the hedgehog. And, you are..?"

"Kakashi Hatake." The man said. "Nice to meet you. So, then, non-ninja are trying to pass the chunin exams. I see."

"You got something against us, joinin?" Sonic folded his arms.

"Not at all, I merely wished to thank you for helping us stop the monster earlier. Monster attacks aren't common, you know. Our last attack was well over 12 years ago. "

"Yeah, we get our methods are… outdated." Ezi cleared her throat. "So hopefully, we can resurface by making allies and not hiding anymore for no good reason. We now want to face things head on!"

"Ah, I see." Kakashi continued to sound observant, calm.

Sonic yawned. "Yeah, we get it's too convenient a monster showed up when monster slayers did, but there's nothing we can do about the coincidence."

"I guess not. Maybe you could call it, fate?" Kakashi analyzed.

"It's possible. After all, like I said, we do want to change our ways."

"Why the sudden urge for something new in your village hidden in the sun, after all of this time? If, you don't mind me asking."

"Not at all." Ezi said amicably. "Our newest Harekage is, a bit younger than usual, so he's seeing things in a different light from the elders. He wants us to grow, as well as share our culture and tradition with other villages. Honestly, we like your village. You have peaceful treaties with other nations."

"True, but some would call that peacefulness weakness."

"Why would they call it that?" Sonic asked.

"In the shinobi world, like you said, you should face things head on. Wars and fighting are how things tend to be handled in this world, in order to show one's honor and dedication to being a shinobi. So you can see how lack of bloodshed and fighting can be seen as a cowardly alternative. However, I do not agree with this."

"Neither do we." Ezi agreed.

"But, of course, if the peace were threatened, it would allow the sensible, true shinobi who attempted things peacefully to reveal, their true, inner strength."

Sonic chuckled. "He's threatening us! I like this guy."

"Sonic!" She proclaimed.

"It's okay, he's right. To be honest, I am threatening you."

"Oh, thanks for your honesty." She said, quietly, sarcastically.

"Please, understand. I am welcoming you to our village, but I also cannot simply trust you right away; that is just not the world we live in. I look forward to seeing how you all work in the exams, too."

"Are you going to be there?" Sonic asked.

"I am much too old now for them." He chuckled. "But, I will be observing when I can. My students will be in the exams as well."

"Oh! How nice. Then, we look forward to their skills, too."

"Yes." Kakashi leaned forward slightly, bowing. "Well, I'll leave you all to it. I know I gave you warning too, but if anyone does harass or threaten you, you may let me or the other jonin know. You are our guests too, after all."

"Um, thanks?" Ezi bowed in a similar fashion.

"Toodles." Kakashi Hatake was gone in a puff of smoke.

"Well, that was certainly… interesting." She mumbled.

"I'm on edge all the time here!" Sonic analyzed. "This place is intense!" They strolled out of the hotel into the streets of Konoha.

"Hey! Thanks for saving our village!" A woman said in a kimono. "I'd be out of business if it wasn't for you!"

"Eh, no problem." Sonic waved. Other people stared in curiosity as the strange animal walking in the red shoes.

"At least they haven't taken out their pitch forks and kunais." He said quietly to Ezi. Aside from all of the bustling people, they speculated the cylindrical buildings plastered on top of each other, connected by clothes' lines and enclosed walkways. A warm scent of meat filled the streets and shops they passed. There were stands made of wood aligned with beautiful arts and crafts like origami fans and wind chimes and flutes. It was a busy village, yet the air held peace in it.

"They wouldn't be so hard on you; you did save their village, after all." Ezi replied to his snarky comment at last.

"Don't you mean _you_ saved the village?" He corrected.

She shrugged. "I only helped."

"Still, Ezi, you…"

She knew he meant to ask her what she had been up to the past 6 months, but somebody else was approaching them on the road.

"Hello, I hate to be so forward," he began, "but, I had to come speak with all of you."

He didn't appear as the other official jonin ninja they had seen in the Hokage's office. In fact, it was possible he was just a teenager. He had roundabout spectacles, dark eyes, pale skin, and he wore a purple, turtle-neck suit. Despite his young appearance, he had silver hair that was pulled back into a short ponytail.

"Uh, yo." Sonic replied.

"I'm sure you've heard this enough today, but I wanted to say thank for defending our village." He bowed, then stretched his arm out. "I'm Kabuto Yakushi."

"Sonic, Sonic the hedgehog." He shook his hand. "How are yeah?"

"Good! Good. And you are..?"

"Um, just call me Ezi."

"Nice to meet you." They shook hands. "I felt like I needed to come see you all, since you're the talk of the town! I work with the leaf medical core, so I figured if you were injured from your fight, I could help you out!"

"Heal us?" Sonic asked.

"Allow me to demonstrate; do you have a wound from the demon battle?"

"Nothing I can't handle!" Sonic said.

"I have one on my arm." Ezi raised her elbow up to reveal a large cut across her lower shoulder.

"Yikes! When the demon threw you back?" Sonic guessed.

"Yeah, it's no big deal."

"May I?" Kabuto raised his arms up, and Ezi leaned in with a nod. He gently placed his fingertips on the cut, and she flinched at the flash of pain. From his hands poured a green glow, and it made small, squishing sound as it wisped through the air onto the wound. It felt cool, and in a matter of about a minute, Sonic and Ezi watched the medical ninja close up the bloody wound.

Sonic whistled, impressed. "That was cool!"

"Yeah, thanks." She moved her arm around a bit to speculate that the entire cut was gone.

"I take it you don't have medical ninjutsu in your village?"

"We're… learning it, but yeah, we're a bit old fashioned." Ezi explained. She realized she was better at lying than she could have imagined, spewing out details of a non-existent village.

"It's a wonderful skill, the bets and one of the most necessary in the ninja world, I think. You can have all the strength and cunning, but what will happen to you when you have a wound you don't know how to take care of?"

"Ah, I suppose that's true." She agreed.

"I must admit, you are strange fellow." Kabuto leaned down to observe Sonic. "I have only seen animals that walk and talk from summoning jutsus; still, you seem different from them, somehow."

"Oh, I see. Come to stare at the freak, eh?"

"No! I was just-!"

Sonic laughed. "I'm just kidding, Kabuto. I get it all the time. I'm a hedgehog, by the way!"

"Oh, I see. You are just an animal, then? How interesting."

"Yeah, and that's just a girl, too." He pointed at Ezi with his thumb. "We do gotta get going, but it was nice meeting you!"

"Oh, I wanted to ask if you would like a tour of the village?" Kabuto insisted. "I bet the Hokage gave you a place to stay, but you haven't received much hospitality from the other ninja."

"How'd you know?" Ezi asked. "Well, we did meet Kakashi, who threatened us, but also welcomed us. So, I guess that was okay?"

"Heh. There's always a price to peace. Don't take it personally, it's in their nature to be cautious."

"Well, Kabuto, we'd love a tour! But right now we gotta go meet the rest of our squad." Sonic explained.

"Ah, I see. Another time, then? It's the least I could do after you saved our village."

"Oh, sure!" Ezi said.

"If you need anything, I'll be working at the medical core, just down the road and two blocks to the left. 'Be seeing you."

"Later, Kabuto!" Sonic waved goodbye to him, and he disappeared as Kakashi had.

"That was a bit more pleasant." Ezi observed.

After the encounters, they were walking down the alley out to the village when they spotted Kankuro harassing Naruto and his friends. Ezi shot her crystal bow and arrow (her sword morphed into a bow), and aided them. After their introduction, Sonic took off towards the Gummi Ship. He moved so quickly, no one seemed to notice him fly over the village wall into the forest, where his old friends lay in wait, just as trapped as he was.

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TO BE CONTINUED

A/N: Hee hee nostalgia. With Boruto out a this point, its refreshing to think about Naruto in the old days. Hope you enjoyed it!


	3. Scroll 3: Enter the Chunin Exams!

Scroll 3: Enter the chunin Exams

Everyone from Sonic's team that had entered the village were back in the same room again to hear Knuckles' news.

"What are you reading, Miroku?" Shippo hung onto the monk's shoulder.

"Sango and I found this pamphlet about the village in the medical center. It talks about the clans' locations and what they're known for, like a map."

"No way! There's a whole bunch!" The fox exclaimed.

"Inuyasha and I noticed that too." Kagome said.

"It only gives brief descriptions of the clans, not much about their abilities, though." Sango explained.

"Ugh, where is Sonic?" Knuckles folded his arms, frustrated.

"Hmph." Shadow agreed.

"You'd think he'd be the first one here." Ezi said.

Finally, the blue blur flew in. "Hey guys. What'd yeah find, Knuckles?"

"Oh, now that _you_ are ready to begin?" Knuckles stood up. "Okay, Tikal told me that we needed to enter a test for three, with 3 parts."

"That's the chunin exams." Sango decided. "Didn't we say it required a squad of 3 people, and there were 3 parts to the exam?"

"Yeah! It must be it!" Shippo declared.

"I've felt it since we got here," Sonic explained, "we're meant to do something here with all of these ninja around. Besides, I think it'll be an interesting challenge!"

"There you go again with messing around!" Knuckles snapped. "You think this is funny? We're trapped in this dangerous place and all you can do is think of ways to make it fun!"

"What's wrong with that?" Sonic shrugged.

"I may have to agree with Sonic." Miroku stated.

"Miroku?" Sango was curious.

"Well, think about it: We're traveling the stars. Not many monks in my day can do that, and with their close friends, too. At least we're not alone in this world, and we can work together to get out of it."

"I'm with the monk on this one." Rouge said.

"I wish we could have more time to train and understand this shinobi way," Ezi admitted, "but I think we can pull it off."

"Oh! That reminds me," Kagome began, "I'll be on the ship with Tails, Cream, Amy and Shippo, right?"

"You're not going to join, Kagome?"

"No, I think it'd be good if some of us stayed and watched the ship. We'd really be cursed here if anything happens to it. Right, Inuyasha?"

He smiled. "Yeah."

"Like I said, this village is pretty peaceful, but ninja are deadly and dangerous, that's why we need people with precise skill and training to go."

Inuyasha squinted at Ezi. "What makes you so qualified, then?"

"I've been training. I can handle a few shinobi." She insisted.

"Well, then I'm going, definitely." Sango said.

"Yes, and I think you should go too, Miroku. There's no demons, but you are sharp and can sense danger. You know your way around forests too, which seems to be the terrain in this village."

"Alright." He nodded.

"Inuyasha, Sonic, Shadow and Knuckles, you should do it too."

"Hey, what about me?" Rouge demanded.

"We can only work in squads of three, remember?"

"So why doesn't someone else not be involved? Like Knuckie-poo?"

"Hey!" He retorted.

"I think you're very capable of being in the exams, but what if Knuckles is able to sense more on how we can get out of here from Tikal?"

"Huh?" Knuckles thought about what Tikal had said in his vision, how she may not be able to reach him again. "Oh, r-right! She also said only one of us needed to win."

"Hm, that makes things easier. Who's team am I gonna be on?" Sonic asked, but no one answered immediately.

"…Maybe we should pull out names from a cup." Ezi decided. The teams were selected in this way as follows:

Sango. Miroku. Inuyasha.

Cloud. Sora. Knuckles.

Ezi. Shadow. Sonic.

"Then, it's decided," Ezi said, "We nine will be representing the village hidden in the Sun. Any questions?"

"No, I'm just going to read up on the culture of this place." Miroku held up one of the many pamphlets he and Sango had collected.

"Yes, let's understand this place a little more." Kagome decided.

Sonic yawned. "Well, you guys have fun. I'm gonna get food now. Later!" He zoomed out of the room.

"Fool, he needs to quit messing around!" Knuckles carped.

"It's how he copes with things, Knuckles." Ezi stood up and stretched, sauntering over to the front door. "'See you guys."

"I'm glad she's so confident on being in the exams." Rouge folded her arms, speaking after Ezi had left.

"I wonder what Ezi's been up to…It's been 6 months since…" Kagome lowered her head. "Well, she did help us take out the demon, and she seems to have had some kind of fighting practice since we last saw her."

"She did back flips and ran around that demon like it was nothing." Shadow said something, finally. "That sort of work takes years. It's only been 6 months."

"Well, as cocky as she seems about it, she qualifies to enter the exams, if yah ask me." Inuyasha decided. "Let's not worry about it. You guys need to prepare for the competition in these exams now."

"What about you, Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.

"Please, I can handle anything those shinobi throw at me!"

The team settled into their rooms, reading books and pamphlets, sipping on mint leaf tea, and planning for what unknown test that lay ahead.

Morning was warm with a cool slight breeze.

Sango gathered her Hiraikotsu and kept Kirara in her Kimono.

Miroku gathered his sutras and staff. He changed his sandals to the ones the shinobi wore, which were blue and had their own ankle braces for support.

Knuckles practiced throwing boulders that morning to ensure his strength, and he wore his yellow tough gloves.

Sora gathered the heavy pouches on his pockets with light potions and elixirs, and kept his keyblade ready to be summoned.

Cloud kept his Buster sword on his back. He wore the attire he was accustomed to from the Olympus Coliseum, keeping part of his face covered.

Shadow readied his glider shoes and chaos control.

Ezi trained that morning, with her phantom gem. She wore the black tank top and khaki shorts with black sandals that were similar to that of the shinobi.

Sonic tapped his red shoes in the grass.

Everyone was saying their goodbyes at the Blue Typhoon when everyone was ready to head out.

"The Hokage said we had to apply for the exams at the building." Ezi enlightened. "It's on the top floor, which is the third floor." She looked around at everybody. "Remember who's on your team."

Tails and Donald were passing out the headbands. They were blue and black bands with a metal plate on them. Tails had helped Donald carve their fake village's symbol into them, which was a minimalized sun with a dot in the middle of it.

Sonic observed the plate. "Do we have to wear this?"

"It represents our village." Knuckles pointed out.

"It also blocks kunais from going through your forehead." Ezi added.

…Everyone put their bands on.

"Sonic!" Amy leapt into his arms. "I'm scared for you and the others! Don't go!"

"Amy, you know it's the only way."

"We will watch the ship for you, Mr. Sonic." Cream told him.

"Chao-chao!" Added Cheese.

Kagome placed the cap they had found on the Blue Typhoon on Inuyasha's head, adjusting it lower and lower while crushing his ears into it.

"Inuyasha, be safe." Kagome said.

He nodded his head, seriously. "We'll be back before you know it."

"Donald, take care of Goofy, will you?" Sora asked. "It's gonna be lame not getting to work with you guys on this."

Donald groaned sadly.

"Don't worry! As long as you remember us, we'll be with you in yur heart!" Goofy explained.

Sora nodded. "Yeah!"

"I'm glad some of you will be staying with me." Tails said. "I'm gonna need some help cleaning up the mess our crash landing made before we can depart anyway." He looked to Sonic and gave him a thumb up.

Sonic repeated the action. "We all ready to go?"

"Yeah." Sango said.

Miroku nodded.

"Hmph." Shadow said.

"Be careful boys, and girls." Rouge looked around at the supposed shinobi representing the sun.

The others watched by the ship quietly as the nine departed.

The nine walked quietly for a while, mentally preparing themselves.

"Hey," Cloud finally said, "we all need to keep a low profile. Do not show your skills unless it's absolutely necessary."

"He's right, we don't want to show off our moves to help the opposing teams out." Ezi added.

"And, you should all take a potion from me." Sora passed them out to everyone. "I've only got enough for one for each of you, but it's better than not having one at all."

"Thanks, buddy." Sonic said. "I'll just put this where I put the rings I collect.

"And where the hell is that?" Inuyasha demanded.

"…So! Any other tips you got for us, Ezi? Cloud?"

"Be on your guard all the time." Ezi said.

When they reached the wide, cylindrical building that was the entrance to the exams, they spotted other unfamiliar shinobi stalking in. Some were young, some were more middle-aged.

They hurried up the stairs and spotted some commotion on one of the floors.

 _Damn! We have to go through this way to get to the next stair case._ Sora thought. And I was trying to avoid conflict before we got started.

There were two young guards in grey standing in the doorway in the middle of the hallway. About 7 or 8 shinobi were trying to get in.

"Let us through!" The clerk from the flower shop was standing in front of two boys who had been knocked down. Inuyasha recognized her right away.

"Sorry, but you're gonna have to do better than that to get in here." One of the snobby guards replied.

"Let's just pass through, leave it be." Ezi whispered to the others. No one said a word as they pressed by the crowd.

"Hey! You nine…" One of the guards was yelling at them. "…You're the new ones, right? From that secret village."

"What's it to you?" Inuyasha demanded.

"Why aren't yah trying to get in? Don't you want to apply for the exams?" The other guard asked.

The group stopped. Ezi looked up at the room number above the door.

"Why would we apply in there? We're supposed to go up to the 3rd floor, this is only the second.

When she said that, the crowd began to whisper and gasp in amazement.

"What's the big deal?" Sonic asked no one in particular.

"Oh! It's a _genjutsu_!" The flower girl realized, looking up at the door. Her comrades stood up.

"What a drag." One of them said.

"Heh! Uh…I-I could tell all the time it was a genjutsu!" The girl declared. "Come on, you fools!"

"Hey! Who you callin' a fool? You didn't notice it was an illusion either!" The larger one of her group retorted.

"Genjutsu?" Sango said.

"Let's go." Ezi and the others continued to the last set of stairs, when they were at a distance from the other groups in the 3rd hallway, they spoke again.

"What happened back there?" Knuckles asked. "It's as if they didn't know they were on the second floor.  
"They didn't know." Ezi explained. "They were under a genjustsu."

"What is that? It sounds like ninjutsu, where they use ninja weapons and skills." Sora said.

"Yeah, and there's taijutsu too." Miroku added. "That's just techniques with basic martial arts, right?"

"Yeah, you've all done your homework." Ezi complimented.

"So, then, what's this genjutsu?" Sonic asked.

"Genjutsu is a surreal technique that involves attacking not with strength or weapons, but with the mind: It's any jutsu that causes the enemy to have an illusion."

"Oh, so they thought they were on the 3rd floor when they were only on the second?" Knuckles realized. "How come the illusion didn't work on us?"

"Honestly, I don't know." Ezi said. "But I do know how you can avoid being in one. It helps if you become aware that it is an illusion, but it helps even more if you injure yourself. The pain you bring in reality will shock your body out of the illusion, most of the time."

"Wow, that's a pretty sneaky technique." Sora analyzed.

"What did you expect from ninja?" Sango sneered. "Ninja are generally quiet and sneaky to begin with, it makes sense if they use tricks. We have to be aware of that."

"There's another trick you should be aware of too," Cloud said, "it's called the substitution jutsu."

"Oh, I'm familiar with it." Sango said. "They use objects equivalent to their body weight to switch with if they are hit with something."

"You sure seem to know a lot!" Sonic complimented.

"Eh, well, if it wasn't a demon slayer getting hired in the feudal era, it was a ninja. Although, an entire world is much different than just seeing herds of them in action.

"Right. So, if you hit an enemy, don't get excited: make sure they are not sneaking up behind you while you're distracted with the substitution." Ezi added.

"Good to know." Shadow said.

The group waited for the other shinobi to enter the room at the end of the hall. They watched in silence as the double door closed and awaited for them to go through it next.

"Here we go." Sora said. "I'm hyped up! Should I be feeling like this?"

"Yes. You should be pumped up for this!" Sonic agreed.

"Beyond that door lies the beginning of the exams." She said.

"Yeah, remember what our goal is: We have to do our best to get back home." Knuckles reminded.

"Ugh! Enough with the build up already!" Sonic marched ahead. "Let's go in!"

"Sonic, wait-"

He busted through the door. What awaited on the other side, none of them would have ever anticipated.

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~…~

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Hundreds.

The smell of dirt and grim, their intense misuse of purpose in their dead eyes, the roaring curiosity of what they may were willing to draw next—

There were Hundreds of people that had filled up the room. They wore their armor, their grey scarfs, their covered faces, their sharp weapons on their backs and belts.

There were just a few pillars among the room, and under them were the hordes of shinobi, all looking at the small group of nine sun ninja that had just busted through the double doors.

It was hard not to stand there, agape. It seemed they were speculating all of the faces in the crowd for ages.

"Don't look back at them, let's settle in here." Ezi whispered, finally. The group shifted to the right of the room, keeping themselves against the wall.

 _Holy cow! All of these guys look dangerous_! Knuckles kept his gloves on the wall as they walked in a line to an open table against the wall. No body sat at the table.

Sonic seemed to the most avid at looking around at the crowd. He spotted the sand ninjas he and Ezi had dealt with before they met Naruto, and they saw him.

The one who had snuck up behind Sasuke with the dark eyes and red hair looked lifeless, not looking at anything in particular, but the girl and the other bully were staring back at him. They smirked.

Sonic waved at them, antagonizing them.

"There's more that signed up here than I expected." Cloud said quietly. As they settled in more, they realized there were quiet conversations happening around the room, and everyone's eyes were not on them as they had feared. It seems they were all just waiting for the exams to start, and more shinobi were still coming in.

"Phew! I feel a little better now." Sora admitted.

"Still, there is a lot of competition in here." Sango analyzed.

Inuyasha looked over towards the front door, and he noticed the flower girl was with her team. They were with other leaf ninja, similar to her age.

"Some of these ninja are just children." He said.

"These children have been training since they were babies. Don't let your guard down, Inuyasha." Miroku warned.

"I know that!" He fixed the cap on his head.

Sonic spotted Naruto, Sasuke, and Sakura enter the room. They looked just as terrified as they may have when they walked in, seeing all of the tough applicants.

"Sasuke! I'm so glad you made it!" The small, blonde flower girl snuck up behind him and jumped around his neck, wrapping her arms around him.

"Ino-pig! Leave him be!" Sakura chided.

Sasuke glowered, unamused as she squawked in his ear. "Oh, Billboard-Brow! I see you're still bugging Sasuke and are as ugly as ever!"

"Psst! Naruto!"

Naruto turned to see Sonic had zoomed from one side of the room to him.

"Oh, hey Sonic!"

"Who are all of your pleasant friends?"

"She's not a friend of mine! That's Ino Yamanaka. She's always fighting with Sakura over Sasuke, because they're rivals."

"I couldn't tell." Sonic grinned.

"What a drag," The skinny member from Ino's team approached with the other, larger, team member. He had a fish net shirt on and his dark hair was spiked into a ponytail. He looked bored. "Ino, stop harassing them already, it's more attention than we need."

"Oh look, the idiot trio is all here!" Naruto pointed at him.

"Stop calling us that!" The boy exclaimed. "You know what? I don't even want to bother with you!"

"That's Shikamaru Nara." Naruto explained to Sonic. "Lazy, always complaining, no motivation. He's a belly aching idiot!"

Beside Shikamru was his larger friend. His brown hair was plugged out into two parts, he wore a scarf and green jacket, and he was munching away at his potato chips with his chubby, swirling cheeks.

"That's Choji Akimichi. He's always eating something. All he is is a fat idiot."

"Hm, I've dealt with those before." Sonic was referring to his arch enemy.

Another squad approached them, and the leader of the team spoke.

"Well, well, looks like we're all here."

The girl beside the leader was gawking at Naruto, but when he looked at her, she looked away, blushing. She had dark violet hair, lavender eyes, and she wore a pale jacket, twiddling her fingers away.

"That's Hinata Hyuga. Every time I look at her, she looks away! I guess she's shy or something."

"She probably likes you. Or hates you." Sonic shrugged. "One or the other."

"The dog boy over there is Kiba Inuzuka. He's annoying, always saying about how good his scent is and carrying his evil dog around. He's bossy and annoys me!"

"Top dog is a little annoying, got it." Sonic nodded.

The third member of the team said nothing, with his shady round glasses, puffy hair, and an over coat that covered his mouth. He was tall and eerie.

"The last guy's Shino Aburame. I don't know much about him! He just sort of stands there."

"You guys too? Aw, man, more competition… what a drag." Shikamaru said to Kiba.

"Looks like all rookie nine are here, eh? This is a first in a while for us leaf ninja: we're all taking the exams!" Kiba proclaimed.

"Hmph. You seem pretty confident, Kia." Sasuke analyzed.

"We've been training long and hard. There's no way we're gonna lose to you guys!"

"Choji, you almost stepped on that bug." Shino stepped in his path.

"Huh? You gonna eat it alive or something?"

"Hey, you guys," Approaching them was Kabuto Yakushi, the medical ninja Sonic had met the other day, "you kids ought to keep it down. You're the rookie nine right? Fresh out of the academy? And with all of your cute faces, you should probably not attract attention to yourself."

Ino scoffed. "And who are you? Acting all haughty?"

"I'm Kabuto Yakushi. Anyway, you should take a look around you"

The rookie nine and Sonic did, and they realized the audience of shinobi were glaring at them all with deadly scowls, in their dark cloaks, gripping ghastly weapons.

"Shinobi from the grass and rain are behind you. They're a bit hot tempered. I just thought I'd warn you all to keep it down, but I guess it can't be helped. You are rookies, after all, not knowing your left from your right."

"Kabuto, right?" Sakura asked.

"Yes..?"

"This is your second time in the exams, right?"

He chuckled, nervously. "Actually! It's… my seventh time. These exams are only held twice a year, so this is my fourth year."

Naruto gasped, excitedly. "Then you know a lot about the exams?"

"Sort of."

"Kabuto, you're pretty awesome huh?"

Sonic smiled, because Naruto had said the same thing about him.

Shikamaru put his hands in his pocket. "But you've tried and failed 6 other times? Are the chunin exams that great of a hurdle? How utterly bothersome…"

"Maybe I can help you cute kids out… With my, ninja info cards."

Ezi observed the room. She was becoming more wary of the ninja surrounding her by the minute. The sand and grass, the leaf and sound ninja…

"MY NAME IS NARUTO UZUMAKI, AND I'M GONNA DEFEAT EVERY ONE OF YOU!"

…Yet, she hadn't seen Naruto and his team enter the room until that moment.

Naruto had his fist out, aimed at all of the other deadly ninja in the room.

"That kid is something else." Sonic snickered. He was back with his group, suddenly.

"Do ninja normally shout out their intentions in this world?" Sango pondered.

They watched as Sakura chided him for being so loud and stupid, then she apologized to everyone in the room. They settled in with the ninja their age by the front door.

When he spotted her observing him, he waved. "Hey! Ezi, Sonic! What's up?"

They waved back. "Hey, Naruto!" Sonic said.

Ezi smiled at the light-hearted shinobi.

"Ugh, you can't be nice to them, Naruto! We may have to fight them, y'know." Sakura warned.

"So? That'd be cool!"

Sasuke Uchiha speculated the area. Every corner was filled with some sort of new threat and challenge that would stop him from winning the exams and seeking his revenge.

He looked at the possible rivals: The sand ninja, Rock Lee, who had asked Sakura on a date, Sonic, and Neji Hyuuga. Luckily for him, the kind and considerate Kabuto Yakushi appeared and assisted them on any questions the rookie nine had about their competition with his… ninja info cards.

"Huh, looks like these exams are going to be intense." Kiba said.

"What about… the blue hedgehog?" He looked over at Sonic as he asked Kabuto this.

Sonic smirked.

"Well, I don't have any information on him." Kabuto explained. "But, I have made a card for him." He lifted up a card with Sonic's profile up, like the others.

"What about his comrade, the girl?"

Ezi said nothing, but she folded her arms.

"I don't have much on her, either." He looked around at the sun ninja. "In fact, I just greeted them yesterday! They did help our village, after all."

"Yes, we did." Ezi stated. "You should take that into consideration before you get all suspicious, Sasuke."

"Hey! Don't talk to him like that!" Ino snapped. "What is wrong with you?"

Naruto laughed. "See? They don't like Sasuke either, just like me!"

At that moment, Sakura's temper flew. She had had it with Naruto.

"BE QUIET, YOU IDIOT! YOU'VE CAUSED ENOUGH TROUBLE ALREADY!"

The pink haired kunoichi threw a punch at Naruto's face. As she did, she retracted her arm back, and her elbow knocked Inuyasha in the face. He jerked back, and the cap on his head fell off.

Everyone in the group gasped. Inuyasha, slightly off balance, became nervous when his dog ears twitched.

The room seemed quiet. Sora sprang into action.

"Inuyasha!" He slapped him on the head.

"Ow! You little son of a-!"

 _Something's coming. Prepare yourself!_

Ezi's head shot up above the crowd. She looked around, seeing movement. The rookie nine ninja were still asking questions about other ninja, like the sound ninja.

"I told you not to wear those dang ears!" Sora chided, trying to make the ears seem fake to everyone.

"The sound village is new," Kabuto was explaining, "unlike the hidden sun village, they just started, but they don't seem to be any sort of threat."

There was something sinister shifting in the crowd. Ezi had noticed it before, eyes glowering at her, but now it was coming towards her.

A familiar darkness.

"Wowie! Those are real dog ears, huh?" Naruto asked, excitedly.

"No they're not! Go away, annoying child!" Inuyasha scooted Naruto away with his foot in the boy's chest.

"Ezi? Do you feel that?" Cloud stood tall beside her.

"Yeah." She nodded.

Sonic was curious. Had they both sensed something? He looked around, but nothing seemed too odd, until—

The wind lifted, and a deadly attack was thrown on one of his comrades.

Ezi flung her body backwards, lifting her right leg up and using her left hand planted on the tile floor. She blocked one of the enemies' at her feet, then she blocked the other with her right hand up, holding his arm.

"WHOA WHAT THE-?" Sora yelled.

Everyone turned to the commotion.

Ezi spun around and the two enemies jumped back. She twirled back onto her feet and speculated the two as they retreated up ahead to their other comrade.

"Hey, you okay?" Sonic asked, standing beside her for support.

She gasped, looking ahead. "It can't be!"

Cloud was there too, staring at the targets ahead in the crowd.

The three enemies stood confidently before them.

Everyone was watching the scene for now, because right after Ezi had been attacked, the sound ninja attacked Kabuto Yakushi too, for mentioning their name. He had revealed how fast he was by avoiding the grusky ninja's punch that swung into the air when he dodged it.

 _Whoa, he's fast too!_ Sonic thought. There were many things going through his mind, such as how Ezi was able to block the attack, and how these enemies appeared out of nowhere.

To everyone's shock, Kabuto fell to his knees and heaved over, puking.

"He dodged it, I saw it!" Sasuke said. "Why did that happen?"

The sound ninja wore light purple scarfs and grey camouflage clothes. They snickered at Kabuto's state.

 _The sound ninja used an ability on him._ Shadow thought. _An ability even I couldn't see… even dodging can be a problem here._

He looked back at the enemies that attacked Ezi.

"Who are you?" Sango demanded. She and Miroku readied their Hiraikotsu and staff.

The Sorceror Aritob stood with his arms folded in his robe. He looked his natural character, his long black hair and his pointy ears.

"Aritob, that bastard!" Inuyasha sneered. "I remember you! Who the hell is with him?"

The other man that had struck had short silver hair and was wearing a tight black suit. He had his hand on his hip as he smirked with his green eyes.

"Kadaj." Cloud said.

"What? That means…"

Their 3rd team member.

"Now, you attacked the wrong person." He said, sweetly. "I meant the _other_ person in black, not that one." He approached, coolly. His dark drapery danced behind him under his pure, long hair, and his sharp emerald eyes cast down at all of them, judging. He was a dark spirit in a room full of meek, petrified flesh.

Cloud could barely contain himself. He wanted to strike now.

"Sephiroth."

"Ah, Cloud…" He said, boldly, "It's been too long. I wanted to see if you were still sharp, but as you can see, my comrades did not do their part."

"I thought we were all on the same page;" Aritob said, "attack the one in dark who stole my power!"

"Still whining about that, Aritob?" Ezi taunted, folding her arms. "It's been awhile."

"Yes…I believe our last encounter involved me making your spineless friend into a pet dragon." He turned to Shadow. "How have things been since you left my leash, ultimate life form?"

"Damn you." Shadow said.

"Wait guys, they could be here to sabotage us and keep us from entering the exams." Sango warned. "We don't want to fight them here."

"Why do you think I haven't attacked him yet?" Cloud sounded irritated.

"Don't worry, we joined the exams too, after all."

"You three did? I wonder why…" Sonic pondered. He had almost asked them if they were stuck on this planet too, but then that would reveal too much to the many spectators of their encounter.

Ezi's vision was red. She wanted to strike Sephiroth for all of the pain he'd caused her friends, killing Aeirth, destroying planets…

She took a step forward, and Cloud placed his hand in front of her. "Don't."

"But, he..!"

"I know what he's done. Let it go. It's not worth it. Not here."

She grunted, but nodded in agreement.

"Chill, guys!" Sora yelled. "Sound and Sun ninja are attacking and the exams haven't even started!"

While Cloud and Sephiroth were having a stare contest, Ezi turned around. "Kabuto, are you okay?"

The shinobi that had just puked for no reason sat up, holding his stomach.

"Yeah…I'm okay." Sakura and Naruto had surrounded him.

"That's what he gets for speaking badly about the sound village." One of them said from afar.

There was a loud explosion. It halted all of the fighting, glares, and intensity of the room.

There was smoke at the chalkboard in the very front of the exam room. When it cleared out, an elite line of shinobi from the hidden leaf were lined up across the podium. The one in the middle front was an older man. His head was completely covered with his head band. He had scars that stretched oblique across his face. He had on a black coat, and he stood erect with his arms behind his back, and a smile on his face.

"Sorry to keep you all waiting!" The man said. "I'm Ibiki Morino, proctor for the first test of the Chunin exams!"


	4. Scroll 4: The Paper Test!

Scroll 4: The Chunin Exams, Paper Test

Ibiki was menacing, for sure.

Everyone, confused, excited, and startled, settled into their teams and observed the proctors in front of the classroom.

"I'm Ibiki, the proctor, and from this moment: your worst enemy."

The shinobi around the room began to murmur. Cloud glared at Sephiroth a final time, as the crowd swept to the front of the wall

"You all will be taking the first test! Here, you will be assigned seats in this room with these cards!" Ibiki held up a flash card with the number 1 on it. "The first test will be a paper exam determining your area of understanding in the ninja world!"

Naruto practically fell to his knees.

"Did… he say..?"

"Paper test, yes!" Sakura cheered.

"NO WAY!" He cried aloud. He fell to his knees and held his hair in his hands. He was out of control upset.

"Yo, Naruto," Sonic asked, "what's up with you? You can handle anything, right?"

"ANYTHING BUT A PAPER TEST!" He cried.

"Ah, I see I've already found your weakness." Sonic chuckled.

The monitors around Ibiki passed out the number cards.

"None of us are together." Sora realized.

"Hey, don't worry." Ezi said. "No matter what, just do your best on this paper test."

They dispersed to their seats, separate from each other. Ibiki explained the rules:

-You must answer all questions.

-If you are caught cheating 3 times out of the ten questions, you will be disqualified from the chunin exams.

-The assistant proctors will be around the room, watching all of you take the test. They will mark on their papers when you have cheated 5 times.

-Not only will it be YOU, but your teammates will also be expelled from the exams if you are caught cheating those 5 times!

"Are there any questions?"

A few ninja had questions, but the fake "sun" village were prepared for anything. They sat in their appropriate seats and waited for Ibiki to begin the test.

Ezi sat her desk quickly. She was trying to wrap her mind on how Sephiroth could have joined the exams, how he was even still alive, him and Kadaj both. Not only that, but Aritob was there too.

Cloud was thinking of it, too. He had defeated Sephiroth with his seven swords, and his body had turned back into his avatar, Kadaj, and he died, slowly, his life returning to the life stream.

His seat was beside the sand ninja, Gaara.

Sango sat next to Shino and Choji from the hidden leaf rookie nine.

Inuyasha sat beside Shikamaru and Rock Lee.

Sora was next to one of the sound ninja, and a grass ninja.

Shadow was beside Sasuke Uchiha.

And, Sonic's seat was next to Naruto.

"Hey! What a coincidence!" Naruto said excitedly. To his right side was the shy girl, Hinata Hyuuga.

"Hey, kiddos." Sonic waved. "Ready for this boring paper test?"

"Uh, yeah!" Naruto chuckled nervously.

"Hey, don't sweat it. I'm not a fan of these things either. Just do your best."

"R-right! W-what he said, N-Naruto." Hinata looked away before they could spark a conversation.

Meanwhile, Shadow was tapping his finger on his desk, impatiently.

"Another one, eh?" Sasuke was observing him. "You look like your friend, but you seem to have less… energy."

"I'm the real thing, kid. Get used to having the cold shoulder instead." Shadow explained.

"Hmph." Sasuke replied.

"Humph." Said Shadow.

Ezi was still trying to wrap her mind on the conditions of the exam, how they would get home, and what that would have to do with Sephiroth and Aritob involved.

"Hey." Kabuto sat beside her.

"Oh, h-hey."

"Nervous?"

"Not at all. You?"

"I'm glad it's not a fight we have to do right now. I'm still queasy from that attack."

"I guess those sound ninja are more of a threat than you thought they'd be."

"Well, they're certainly not as pleasant as you all are."

The proctors passed out the papers and it was time to begin. There were nine solid questions that were similar to a math test, asking about a shinobi's position and meters and distance and probability. There were too many steps to follow: it was like taking a final test in an advanced algebra class!

It was almost a temptation on Knuckles' part to look at the test beside him. When he looked up, one of the proctors in grey was sitting with his legs crossed, and his eyes were fixed on him. He cast his eyes down quickly and tried to focus on the questions.

Ezi had answered number one, but that was all she could do.

 _I feel so stupid! Is this how all shinobi paper tests are? This is not looking good for us… Inuyasha and the others from the feudal era must be really struggling. Have we lost this before we've even really started?_

"Hey," Kabuto whispered. She dare not look over at him, in fear of the proctors accusing her of cheating.

"Hm?"

"Don't sweat it. You can look at my paper if you want."

"I'll get caught." She said, still looking down at her own paper.

"I still owe you, for helping our village."

She felt like they were whispering too much. "It's ok, really, I can do it." Could she? She had never cheated on a test before, but there was more at stake than just passing or failing the test.

 _What should I do?_

 _Don't panic._ A familiar voice, in her head; but, not her own.

While Sonic was scrambling to figure out what to do, a kunai whizzed between Hinata and Naruto. It landed on another water ninjas test behind them, but it had startled all of them.

"5 strikes and you're out!" The proctor from the side yelled. "Seat number 273, you and your team are disqualified."

"What? No way! How did you know?" The shinobi looked over at his other two comrades in the room who stood up, embarrassed by their loss because of him, keeping their eyes cast down.

As the exams continued, more people were being disqualified by the minute for cheating.

Anyway, Ezi was trying to understand the strange voice in her head.

 _Uh…. Shadow? Is that you? Or maybe my conscious just sounds like you…_

 _What? No, it's me…_

 _Hey! What's going on? How are you two in my head?_ It was Sonic, now.

 _Guys? What's going on?_ Knuckles was there, too.

 _Okay, this is really weird, and I don't like that you guys are in my head!_ Ezi snapped.

 _Don't you mean that you're all in my head?_ Sonic corrected.

 _No, it's my doing._ Shadow explained _. Listen, I stole an ability from NiGHTS a long time ago for mind manipulation, but it seems to only work on those who have been in the dream world NiGHTS is from._

 _So then, it's you, me, Knuckles and Sonic that can… like, read each other's minds or something?_

 _Sort of. We've all been apart of each other's lobe in our minds that produces dreams, so this is something similar to that._

 _Okay… so, why did you decide to use this power now?_

 _So you all can listen to me when I give you my answers._

 _What?_ Knuckles protested _. Why would we want your answers? We can do this ourselves!_

 _I'm the Ultimate Life form, come on… this form of calculation is nothing for me._

 _'I'm the ultimate life form! Blah blah blah!' He thinks he's so cool!_ Came Knuckles' involuntary comment.

 _….We are in each other's minds, so try not to think anything too robust_. Shadow warned too late.

 _Shadow, I don't like that we'd just be copying from you, it's like cheating._ Ezi said.

 _Do you want to win or not? We have bigger things to fuss over than cheating on a test, besides, look around._

Ezi, Sonic and Knuckles did just that. They saw ninja focused on their papers, fidgeting, making weird hand signs in their laps, closing their eyes as they performed some kind of jutsu.

 _I don't get it. What am I looking at?_ Knuckles asked.

 _I see… Everyone's doing it. That's the test, isn't it?_

 _Exactly._ Shadow replied.

 _Hey, would someone tell me what's going on?_ Sonic demanded.

 _Don't you guys get it? It's the test: The real test is to cheat without being caught, that's why this test is so hard! I wanted to look over at Kabuto's test so badly, just because I thought it was unusually difficult. When you think about the shinobi world, having to sneak up on your enemy and being secretive is essential._

 _Oh! That's why there's so many rules about cheating!_ Sonic realized.

 _Hmph. I realized it because of that boy beside me. His eyes started glowing red and his hand was moving at an inhumanly pace._

 _Sasuke's eyes_? Ezi guessed. _Interesting_ …

 _Too bad the others can't do this. They're gonna need the right answers too!_ Knuckles thought.

 _With my speed, I'll figure out some way to give them the answers in time!_ Sonic replied.

 _We're running out of time. I have already calculated the right answers, so here they are…_

Sonic, Knuckles, and Ezi wrote down the answers with work as Shadow told them what to write. By the time they had finished, so had the length of the exam.

"Time is up!" Ibiki declared. "Now, we will begin the second part of the first exam… for those of you who have made it this far!"

 _We did it! We passed the paper test!_

 _Knuckles, did you not just hear him? Let's see what we have to do next!_ Sonic tapped his pencil, irritably.

"Now, we will give you the tenth question! But, there are rules you must be aware of: If you decide to not take the tenth question, regardless of your other answers, you will get a zero and fail the test!"

Everyone began chattering.

"Hold on! There is more," Ibiki declared.

 _Sheesh, this guy likes to make rules, huh?_ Sonic noted.

"If you choose to take the 10th question and your answer is incorrect: you will not only fail, but you will be barred from the ever taking the exams ever again!"

Kiba was the first to stand and protest with his dog. He pointed at the accused Ibiki. "That's ridiculous, man! How are these rules legitimate? There's too much at stake either way!"

 _Guys, this is intense! But we don't need to pass to be a chunin, only to pass._ Ezi analyzed _._

 _Right, we don't have to worry about that. I'll know the answer either way, so nobody better quit._ Warned Shadow.

"I wasn't making the rules before, but I am now!" Ibiki proclaimed, proudly. "Now, you have a choice: Quit, and take the exams next time, or you keep going, and if you fail, you can never join the chunin exams again! If you wish to quit and try another day, you may raise your hand."

There were whispers as the shinobis pondered what to do.

The man next to Sonic raised his hand.

"Ginai, Inaho! I'm sorry, guys, but I'm out." He raised his hand and stood up.

"Number 50, fail!" One of the proctors yelled. "Number 127 and 150, you fail, too!"

After that, several teams began raising their hands. Sonic looked around, ensuring none of his friends had raised their hands and given up, and then something he did not expect happened….

Naruto Uzumaki raised his hand.

Sonic gasped. Everyone was silent as another shinobi was about to give up.

 _No way, Naruto? Why?_ Ezi thought.

 _He is trying to be Hokage, maybe he doesn't want to risk it._ Sonic shrugged. "Hey man, you can't give up-"

Naruto SLAMMED his hand back onto the desk.

"DON'T UNDERESTIMATE ME! I DON'T QUIT AND I DON'T RUN! YOU GUYS AREN'T GONNA SCARE ME OFF, NO WAY!"

Everyone remaining stared in shock at Naruto.

"I DON'T CARE IF I'M A GENIN THE REST OF MY LIFE, I'LL STILL BE HOKAGE SOMEDAY!"

"This is your last chance, if you wish to decide to quit." Ibiki announced, more towards Naruto than to anyone else.

"No way, I never go back on my word. That's my way of the ninja." Naruto replied, his arms confidently folded.

 _Well, he's got spirit, I'll give him that._ Sonic thought.

Ezi smiled. _Good job, Naruto…_

 _"_ Well, then, I admire your determination," Ibiki said, "So there's only one thing left for me to tell you all…. And that is that you all passed the first exam!"

All the shinobi seemed shock. There was a feeling of relief and utter bliss as it spread throughout the remaining people in the room who had survived, but also confusion.

Sakura arose from her seat. "Hold on! Are you saying we passed the test without answering the 10th question?"

"Actually, your adversity to stay was the 10th question."

The female sound ninja arose. "So then, the other 9 questions didn't matter at all?"

"Of course they mattered! It was a test to see how well one could gather protected information in the most intense situations, regardless of the consequence. You see I graded you based on whether you decide to pass or fail on a team basis. As I'm sure you all became aware quickly, you had to pass the test by cheating, as the test questions were too advanced for genin. Information gathering can be worth your life, and it can get messy…"

Ibiki revealed his bare head, which was filled with scars and marks.

"It is important to risk your life, but also to do so cleverly, when gathering information on a mission can be vital. "

"I still don't get the tenth question." The sand kunoichi asked.

"Yeah, explain it anyway." Sakura added.

"The tenth question was based on your perception as someone who has teammates. In the middle of gathering information, can't you just give up when your own life is in danger, and not worry about your comrades and only yourself to get quit in the middle of a mission? No—you must pursue the mission head on, with your team, no matter what. That is why all of you passed the first exam!"

"YEAH, ALRIGHT, I PASSED!" Naruto cheered.

Everyone was settling into their victory, but abruptly: Glass shattered from the nearby window, and Ibiki was blocked by cloth being held up by kunai.

"Alright you maggots! Don't celebrate just yet!" The woman in the cloth rolled onto the podium. She had light violet hair that was spiked and pulled up, wore a fish net tank top, and had on a long khaki jacket.

"Oh wow, what a beauty." Miroku whispered.

"I'm Anko Mitarashi, the second proctor of the chunin exams! If you're all ready, everyone FOLLOW ME!"

"She's really boisterous." Sora snickered.

"What? Ibiki, there's still over 30 teams left! You let that many teams pass?

"Or it could be, a stronger crop of candidates." He retorted.

"Hm, they don't look it," Anko taunted, "trust me, when I'm done with them, only half will pass.

"Only half? Wow…" Ezi whispered.

"Don't worry about it. You've made it this far, don't give up." Kabuto insisted.

"Heh, this is gonna be fun." Anko snickered. "Alright, you maggots! You had it easy this round, but tomorrow you won't be so lucky! I'll tell your squad leaders where to meet tomorrow morning and we'll start from there. Dismissed."

.

.

~…~

.

.

The next day appeared before she had realized. Ezi had been embarrassed to look Kabuto's way, now, Miroku's left cheek was red, and the shinobi who had passed where in front of a dark, deep, forest, gated by a wire fence with giant trees and bark that reeked of danger within.

"Welcome to the second exam location! This is the 44th battle training zone," Anko spoke to the teams aloud, "but we in the leaf village call it the Forest of Death."

A chill swept through the crowd.

Naruto gulped. "Forest of… Death?"

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED


	5. Scroll 5: The Forest of Death!

Scroll 5: The Forest of Death

 **The night before the second exam** , many things occurred among the stranded group that was Sonic and his friends.

They walked casually out of the test office from the first test, not saying anything to anyone. Rather than go to the hotel first, they went back to the Blue Typhoon, where everyone was waiting for them.

"Sonic, you're back!" Tails said. Everyone headed out from the ship to greet them.

"Thank goodness! I was so worried!" Amy ran up and embraced him.

"Inuyasha, did you all finish already? Did you pass?" Kagome asked.

"We all passed the first test." He answered. "Our second test will be tomorrow, and we don't know how long that one will take."

"It was a rather interesting test." Miroku said. "I'm glad none of us quit."

"Yes… When Ibiki said we may never get to take it again, I was worried." Sango said.

"But it has to be THIS test we pass. The next chunin exam won't be for another half of a year." Ezi said. "We'll have to go back into the village to our hotel so we know what we're doing for tomorrow, since we don't have a squad leader."

"Hey, maybe one of you could be our squad leader!" Knuckles decided.

"I could do it!" Shippo yelled. "Uh, what do I have to do?"

Sonic chuckled. "Sorry, little buddy, you're too young and short to be our leader."

"Aw, that's mean!"

"Well, we'll worry about it later. I'm actually tired from today. That test shot my nerves!" Sora stretched.

"There's something else…" Ezi looked down. "Sephiroth and Aritob are here."

"What? That creepy sorcerer and that guy with the silver hair?" Rouge scoffed. "Great, we have enough problems as it is!"

"They're going to try to stop us, no doubt. Why else would they be here?"

"I'll take care of Sephiroth and Kadaj." Cloud said.

"I'll take on Aritob any day!" Sonic said.

"Yeah, I'll get that bastard for what he did to me." Shadow said.

"Let's focus on the second part of the exam. We should head back."

They ate and talked more with the others and said their goodbyes again, not knowing how long the next test would be. They returned to the hotel to the three rooms to rest, staying with each other in their groups.

Sonic lay on the windowsill, Shadow had his arms folded on the couch, and Ezi stood by the bed. There were too many things going through her head, sleep seemed irrelevant.

The door knocked. Ezi answered. Despite having met them the other day, she was wary when she saw Kakashi and Iruka at the door.

"Oh, hello."

"Hey guys." Kakashi waved. "Congrats on making it this far. Since you don't have squad leader here with you, I've come to let you know you need to be at the 44th Battle training zone by eight o'clock tomorrow morning."

"44th training zone, got it." She nodded.

"How did my squad do?"

"Oh, you mean…? Sorry, who is your squad?"

"Team seven: Naruto Uzumaki, Sakura Haruno, and Sasuke Uchiha."

"No way! You're their teacher? Awesome!" Sonic exclaimed. "Naruto did well, he showed a lot of teams up by not giving up and making it passed the paper test!"

"Heh, I knew they could do it." Kakashi chuckled. "You see, Iruka, nothing to worry about."

"Well, Anko's test is not going to be mind games, it'll be much worse." Iruka said.

"I don't know what the test is going to be about, but, do you all have any questions?"

"I don't think so… thank you, Kakashi."

He nodded. "Toodles." He and Iruka vanished in a puff of white smoke.

"I hate it when they do that." Shadow commented.

"We need more information, but I don't want to ask them. They are keeping an eye on us, so anything we ask them they might think it as suspicious." Ezi closed the door.

"I agree." Sonic propped himself on the window again, looking out into the village.

The door was being knocked on again. Confused, she opened the door once more.

"Hello! I had hoped to find you here." It was Kabuto Yakushi.

"Oh, hey, Kabuto." She smiled. "Did you need something?"

"Well, I wanted to say good job on the first part of the exams."

"Thanks, you too!"

"Also, I was wondering if you all wanted that tour? I could give you information on the ninja in the exams that are left."

"Oh!" She turned to Sonic and Shadow. "Perfect! Would you guys like to go?"

"I'll pass." Shadow said.

"I'm gonna go run around myself!" Sonic said. "I'd love to go with you two, but, you know, I'm fast, so…"

"Oh, alright…" Ezi frowned. She had hoped they would have been more active in gathering information. "I guess we won't go, then."

Kabuto chuckled. "Can you come with me, Ezi-chan?"

She looked at him. He was grinning, almost intrigued by whatever answer she was going to give him.

"Um, sure. I can go."

"I won't take too much of your time." He held his hand out to her. "Let's go."

"Okay… I'll be back, guys."

"Later, gator!" Sonic zoomed out, and Ezi left Shadow in the room. She and Kabuto walked out into the street with the other locals, staying on the lighted path, passing by small shops filled with warmth of food, crafts and light. Woman walked around in kimonos, and children held small firecracker sticks that whizzed by as they chased each other.

"Kabuto, your village is very nice." She said.

"Yeah, it doesn't really reflect the ninja way once you're out here."

"It's okay, it's still nice. So, what's this area we're going to be taking the second exam in?"

He chuckled. "You don't hesitate, do you? Well, the second exams are being held at the Forest of Death, which is also called the 44th Training Zone."

"Forest… of Death?"

"Yeah, although I don't know what we'll be doing there. It's a pretty… deadly forest."

"Hence the name, right?"

"It has giant wild animals and insects inside, poisonous plants, and tomorrow, blood thirsty ninja."

"Oh, I'm so excited." She said, dully.

"I think you'll be okay. You seemed to know how to defend yourself, better than I can, anyway."

"Don't put yourself down. Those sound ninja used some kind of trick."

"Heh, thanks for the confidence." He said. "So, I've heard enough about my own village, what about yours?"

"Oh…" What could she say about her make believe village? "Some of it is, underground, so we don't get to see the sky as much. We have markets, like this, and training grounds, but our weapons are more sword-oriented. Our missions relate to fighting dangerous monsters on the roads and near other villages before they can wreak havoc."

"Why do you guys fight monsters?"

"In the ancient times, we were hired to do it, but as monsters became less and less of an issue, it was the shinobi we had to start worrying about. So, we went into hiding."

"Funny, I don't recall any history about your village before."

"We were not a village before, just mercenaries paid to fight monsters. We became a community when we found our talents were becoming outdated, though."

"Well, you seem very sharp for someone with outdated skills."

"I said our village was outdated, not necessarily its warriors."

"Well, aside from the sound village showing up, you are the most interesting thing hat's happened around here; you and your friends, that is."

"Thanks. We don't want to draw a ton of attention, but we would like to be seen as a village you can trust."

"I understand." He looked over to the side. "Hey, come with me."

Kabuto jumped onto the medical core roof, and Ezi had no trouble following him.

"Wow…" They looked out into the city. The lights didn't over power the starry night sky, where they could see almost everything, from the training grounds, to the memorial site, to the monumental mountain where the four heads of the Hokage were carved into.

"I come up here often during my breaks. It's a nice view."

"Thanks for sharing it with me." She nodded.

"I had a question…" He scratched the back of his neck. "Do you think when the exams are over I could see you guys more? Like I said, you're all pretty interesting, and things can get boring around a peaceful village like this."

She stepped back. She thought about how they would be leaving once they won the exams.

"What's wrong?"

"Well, Kabuto, you're really nice, but I don't know if we'll be able to do that. We have to get back to our village right away after the exams."

He chuckled. "I understand. I suppose I've asked too much of you."

"No! You haven't, it's just, we'll be busy, and…"

"Too busy even for a date?"

She blinked.

"A..?"

He laughed. "You're a very serious fighter, but you're not used to that sort of thing, are you?"

"Um, well, I…" She was becoming increasingly aware of the fact that he was a man and she was a woman, and they were alone, together. "I, you know, this and that…"

"I didn't mean to startle you with the thought. No need to get embarrassed. It's just, when I said I wanted to see you all after the exams, I really meant I wanted to see you."

"W…why?"

"Like I said, you're…interesting. You seem to be at a higher level than most shinobi at your age, I mean, I did see you fight that demon."

"O-oh, y-you saw that?" She was mentally hitting herself for stammering so much. It occurred to her she had never been asked out on a real date before, but she was trying to adjust to the idea, and reminding herself of how she would normally deal with it.

"I did see. I'm very impressed, Ezi-chan."

She cleared her throat. "Well, that's all great, but it will be shameful for me if I don't pass the second part of these exams." She stood tall as she looked back in the direction they came.

"I see. You have your priorities straight." He analyzed.

"Yeah…" She felt sweaty. "Well, it's getting late. Thanks for showing me around."

"No problem. Come on, I'll take you back."

They walked in silence over to the hotel inn. Kabuto stopped when they were at the front of it.

"Get some sleep for the exam tomorrow, Ezi-chan." He turned to leave.

"K-Kabuto!"

He turned to her.

"Um, I'm sorry, but, I'd still like to be friends, if that's okay?"

He smiled. "I apologize, I'm just a bit straight forward and honest with things. I hope I didn't pressure you too much. I'd like to be friends, with you and your teammates."

"That sounds good." She smiled. "Goodnight."

"Goodnight, Ezi-chan."

She walked into the inn. She felt awkward, but she knew she had to get focused for the exam the next day.

.

.

.

~…~

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.

.

The next morning, they got their battle gear ready and headed for the training zone. It was a forest outside of the hidden leaf village, but unlike the rest, it was barred and gated.

"…But we call it the Forest of Death." Anko announced.

There was a breeze that trickled through as the startled teams awaited for what would happen next.

"We're getting some things together at the entrances. Once we're done, I'll announce what you all will have to do. 'Be back soon." Anko vanished.

As the shinobi waited, they talked quietly among their own groups.

"I can't believe this place… looks dangerous." Sora said.

"We better prepare for anything in there. Watch for plants and large animals." Sango said.

"Please, we're monster slayers, this place is basically our specialty." Inuyasha said.

Naruto's team was ahead.

"Ah, excuse me." Miroku walked over to them. "Hello young lady." He addressed Sakura, grasping her hands gently in his own.

"Do you think when you come of age, you could have the honor of baring my children?"

"WHAT?" She blushed.

"Idiot monk!" Sango swatted him across the face. "I'm so sorry, little girl."

"Little?" She echoed.

As he rubbed his red cheek, he began rubbing Sango's bottom as well.

"Eek!" She threw her hand into his other cheek.

"Forgive me, I'm just nervous for the big test." He said, sadly.

"That pervert." Knuckles chided.

Ezi turned her head to see the remaining teams. There were still many shinobi left, and she could see Kabuto and his comrades dressed in purple not too far behind her. She looked away.

Konohamaru appeared and asked Naruto many interview questions about how he had managed to make it to the chunin exams this far. Sonic listened in as Naruto told the story of passing as genin when he used his shadow clone jutsu to stop a thieving jonin. He talked of how he, Sakura and Sasuke had passed Kakashi's test of teamwork in order to be able to go on D-rank missions with one another. He revealed the unlikely story of how a D-rank mission of guiding a carpenter ended up being a dangerous S-rank mission, as S-rank criminals were involved. He explained how he and Sasuke had defeated Zubuza and Haku of the village hidden in the water (with the help of Kakashi). Then, he mentioned the demon attack on the village, how he and his teammates had chosen to join the exams together, and how they passed the first paper test.

When he was finished explaining his epic story, Anko Mitatrashi appeared again.

"Oh man, this whole place creeps me out." Sakura gurgled.

"It should." Anko heard her. "They call this place the Forest of Death, and soon enough you're gonna find out why."

Naruto snorted. He stuck his hips out and put his knuckles on them.

 _"they call this place the forest of death! And soon you're gonna find out why!"_ He had mocked her, whole heartedly, with a squeaky voice and attitude. "Do your worst! You're not gonna scare me away!"

Anko threw a kunai that whizzed passed Naruto's cheek and passed him onto the ground, near a grass ninja with long hair. Anko was behind Naruto in seconds.

"Kids like you always die at the beginning, tough guy." She taunted. His cheek was bloody from the knife and she began to wipe it off with her finger. "Kids like you usually leave blood all over this place."

"Whoa, she's creepy!" Sora commented.

Anko spun around to the grass ninja who had picked up her knife with her tongue.

"Sorry, I only meant to return this to you." She said, her long tongue wrapped around the weapon.

"Why, thank you grass ninja." Anko didn't seem phased as she took her kunai. "If you want to stand this close to me, you must be desiring a predetermined death."

"Forgive me. The feeling of your knife wisping through my hair got me a little excited, I meant no harm." The grass ninja walked back to her comrades.

Ezi looked to see if Naruto was alright: he was attempting to stick his tongue out, like the grass ninja had. Anko walked back to the front.

"Now before we begin this test, I have something to give you all a standard consent form." She passed the paper to one ninja, who passed it around.

"What is that for?" Naruto asked.

"Some of you may not make it back from this test. So, I'll need your consent in case that happens, otherwise it would be my responsibility!" She started laughing. The crowd began to speak quietly at the news.

"I knew it. This is going to be a deadly test." Cloud said. He looked over at Sephiroth's team, only to see that Sephiroth was already looking at him, smirking.

"Allow me to explain the terrain of this survival test you will be taking." She held up a map with a circular perimeter. "The 44th Battle Training Zone has 44 gates to enter into it. There is a river in the middle of the forest, and in the very center is a tower, which is 10 kilometers from each entrance. The test consists of… an anything goes battle, to get your hands on these scrolls."

She held out the two scrolls with symbols on them. One was white, and the other was blue.

"Both of them?" Sasuke asked.

"Yes. You will be fighting to get an earth scroll, and a heaven scroll. There are 30 teams, so half of you will be trying to get an earth scroll, and the other half will be trying to get a heaven scroll. The test also has a time of 120 hours. That's five days you'll have to complete this mission."

"Five days?" Ino whined. "What are we supposed to do for food? How will we survive?"

"Look around the forest: it has plenty of food and plants you can eat."

"That's not all it has," Kabuto added, "it also has dangerous bugs and poisonous plants."

"Oh, great!" Choji whined.

"Clam down! This is why they call it survival, you know!" Ino snapped.

"It will be challenge indeed!" Rock Lee decided, with glistening, white teeth.

"Surrounded by enemies trying to hunt each other with little food and water; there won't be time to rest." Sasuke said.

"That's right. This is a grueling test fit for how well you can endure behind enemy lines. It's likely that half of you won't make it." She said.

"Man, this is gonna be a drag." Shikamaru carped.

"There are ways of being disqualified, so listen up!" She held up her hand. "One: You and your teammates are unable to make it to the tower with both scrolls after five days. Rule two: If one of your teammates becomes incapacitated, and can't continue on. And three: absolutely under no circumstances are you allowed to open your scroll until you have reached the tower."

"W-what if the scroll accidentally rolls open a little?" Naruto asked.

"Then, you'll accidentally be disqualified. There are missions where you will have to carry confidential information. That's all. You will turn in your consent forms to the booth and trade it for your scrolls." She lowered her head for effect. "Oh, and one more word of advice…" She raised it. "JUST DON'T DIE!"

The rookie nine, Rock Lee's team, Kabuto's team, Gaara's, Sonic's, Sora's, and Inuyasha's, were all preparing for the second test with the other shinobi.

As they were setting up the booth, the teams scattered and discussed strategies for the exam.

"This is what I was expecting the entire test to be like." Inuyasha sat under a tree. The others joined him in the shade.

"Stay sharp. Take turns keeping watch. Avoid poisonous plants and attacks from the trees above." Cloud instructed.

"The gates are far away from each other, but we should try to locate one another in the forest." Ezi said.

"Still, focus on finding the right scolls." Inuyasha added. "It looks like we won't be able to see which teams got what scrolls."

"Yeah, and the sooner we find the right scroll, the sooner we can be safe in the tower." Sora said.

"Let's do this, guys!" Sonic declared.

Each group went to the curtained booth one at a time to turn in their forms and collect their scroll. They aligned at the gates with their squads of three, waiting for them to open.

Sonic grinned. "Yeah! We're gonna dash in, right?"

"Of course, idiot." Shadow said.

Ezi's palms were sweaty. So far, she felt prepared for this world, but training was much different than real life.

Sora, Cloud, and Knuckles were at their gate.

"Sephiroth will be inside." Cloud clenched his fists.

"Hey, don't let the darkness get to you Cloud." Sora patted his shoulder. "Remember, we're all here for you."

"Yeah, we'll get through this test, together!" Knuckles added.

At the other gate, the feudal era group was also on edge.

"We can use Kirara to fly through this forest, Miroku." Sango said.

"Right, but we still need to prepare for ninja attacks. Monsters, I can handle, but it will be a different situation, dealing with the shinobi and their jutsu."

"Hmph, whatever! Let's just get the scrolls and get out of here!" Inuyasha decided.

The proctors moved out of the way, and the gates burst open.

"GO!"

Kirara turned huge, and Sango and Miroku jumped on, as Inuyasha dashed ahead into the forest.

Sonic and Shadow zoomed in, with Ezi not too far behind them, jumping into the trees.

Cloud, Sora, and Knuckles all ran in together.

The second exam had now begun.

.

.

.

~…~

.

.

.

It was quiet. No bugs were chirping, no animals were croaking. The trees had no breeze through them.

Sonic, Shadow, and Ezi had settled on a thick branch after an hour and a half of running through trees. They had not bumped into anyone yet.

"This is more boring than I thought." Sonic was stretching his arms and twisting his ankles to warm up for more running.

Ezi was chewing on a green sap twig. She looked down, around the area.

"We have a heaven scroll. There's more of a probability we'll find a team with an earth scroll, but not by much."

"Hmph."

There was ferocious roar, and a young girl's shriek. Sonic quickly ran to it. Shadow and Ezi dashed after him.

"Wait, Sonic! It could be a trap!" Ezi called out above him, in the branches.

They were coming up to a clearing where a giant bear, 100 feet tall, was standing above a shriveling, small kunoichi. Another ninja had already cut through the bear's arm, and it was tumbling through the plants, collapsing backwards.

Sonic, Shadow, and Ezi hid behind the trees.

It was Sasuke that had taken down the bear as if it were nothing.

"You don't have the scroll we need." He said to the girl. With that, he jumped to the next tree, then the next, until he was gone. The girl was still mesmerized, Sonic zoomed out from behind the tree and grabbed the girl's scroll on her belt, then ran back to them.

"Hey!" She yelled. The three of them ran back to the spot they had been in, where the quiet settled in.

"Damn." Shadow said. Sonic held the scroll out.

"Another heaven scroll. Just our luck."

"We'll keep them both." Ezi said. "Let's keep moving."

.

.

.

It was getting dark. Inuyasha kept his nose high as the others rested on the tree branch.

Sango pet the tiny Kirara on her lap. "It's going to get dark, but we can't light a fire."

"Yeah, it'll be cold…" Miroku said, "…Come to my arms, Sango."

"You wish!"

"Hey you two, be quiet." Inuyasha looked down. "I sense a group coming."

Sango grabbed her Hiraikotsu. Miroku, his staff. Kirara's low growl hummed on Sango's knee as they waited.

On the ground below, three genin marched through the dark. They seemed to be the same age as them, two male and one female from the village hidden in the water.

"Kubiki, hurry!" One of them whispered. "If we can make it to the tower tonight, we'll be home free!"

"They're talking about the tower, already?" Inuyasha whispered.

"Did you hear something?" One of them said.

They kept quiet on the branch, hushing their breath.

The group stopped when another group walked right up to them.

Inuyasha could smell him. _Damn! It's him!_

Sephiroth, Aritob, and Kadaj approached the team.

"Hello, kitties." Aritob taunted the three shinobi.

"Who do you think you're mocking?" One of the boys stepped up. "Water style: Crystal wave-!"

Sephiroth was behind all three of them, suddenly. His Masamune was covered in blood as he held it down and out to the side of him.

As a single black feather fluttered to the earth, so did the three ninja.

The horrified three above them stood perfectly still, shocked. Inuyasha had a desire to go down and strike Sephiroth for murdering them like it was nothing. He looked up at Sango and Miroku, who were wide eyed and had no intention of revealing themselves.

Kadaj and Aritob began sifting through their pockets like common thieves until Aritob located the scroll.

"It's the one we need." He stated.

"Excellent." Sephiroth whisked his sword clean of the blood, then wiped the rest off with his cloak.

"Let's go." Kadaj said, monotonously. The three of them began darting ahead, but Sephiroth stopped.

He looked up.

Inuyasha moved back against the trunk. _Damn! Did he see me?_ There was sweat patterned between the sides of his face and his long hair.

"Sephiroth. Let's go, we got what we wanted." Aritob retracted and came back to him.

Sephiroth continued to look up.

 _Can he sense us? We haven't moved an inch!_ Inuyasha slowly reached for his Tetsaiga in its sheath.

"Aritob," He spoke, finally, with authority. "Did I ever tell you how I survived after Cloud had defeated me again?"

"Hm? No, I suppose not." He scratched the itch on his cheek.

"I don't know either." He tilted his head up and to the side as he continued to look at the tree.

"I thought it was luck, or maybe that I was just a clone of myself. But, when I realized what I was still tied to, why I couldn't just stop existing, I realized: I can never stop existing. As long as there is light and darkness, I will always be in the darkness. I will always be there, undefeatable, merciless, and prepared to do what I do best."

"Which is..?" Aritob drawled, unamused.

Sephiroth smirked. "Well, I'll let my work speak for itself." Finally, he looked down. "Let's go."

They dashed away, and Inuyasha inhaled a gulp of air.

"Did you see that? He just sliced through them, in a single second!" Miroku gasped. They were all sweaty from the anticipation and humidity.

"That creep is more dangerous than Aritob." Inuyasha concluded. "I wanted to strike, but…"

"I'm glad you did not." Miroku said.

"We need to bury the bodies." Sango said.

"We may not have a chance to. If other groups see us, they'll attack us." Inuyasha said.

"So… we just leave them there?"

"Normally I wouldn't care about an attack, but there's a lot at stake here, and if he shows up again..."

"It's not like you to run away, Inuyasha." Miroku analyzed.

"I'm not running! I'm protecting you guys."

"Thanks, but, we don't need it."

"Really? You think you can face that thing that just killed 3 kids in a second and come out alive?"

They were silent. He was right, and Sephiroth's abilities were beyond any of them.

"Let's go, in case they come back." Sango decided. They leaped into the other direction, depleting any chance of encountering them again.

.

.

.

~…~

.

.

.

There had been screams throughout the forest that night. No one really slept.

Sonic was eating a pango fruit when the morning light came through the trees again. They were ready to search for an earth scroll.

Ezi had managed to stay up all night, but now the lack of sleep was effecting her. She swallowed down the desire to close her eyes, the droopiness, the agonizing quench to dream.

"I thought of something." Shadow said. "We should head for the tower."

"Why? We don't have the earth scroll yet." Sonic said.

"Yes, but think about it: all of the teams that do have their scrolls will be going over there. We could wait for them there."

"Lame! I'm trying to get this thing done fast! It's ridiculous we've only seen one team in 18 hours." Sonic kicked a pebble. "I should just zoom around and find the others."

"We've been over this already," Ezi sighed, "the ninja will track your foot prints and you'll lead them all straight to us."

"Good! Then maybe we could have some candidates to get the scroll from!"

Suddenly, Shadow took off up into the trees. He came back down in a few seconds.

"I saw the tower. We can get there in less than an hour if we all run."

"Guys, we don't need to draw attention to ourselves." Ezi reminded. "What if we bump into those sand ninja, or Sephiroth?"

"I can take him!" Sonic insisted.

"No, Sonic, you can't." She sighed, again.

"No way! Shadow, will you please tell her how qualified I am to kick that creep's—"

"Shh!" She said.

"No, I can't believe you don't think I could fight Sephiroth-!"

Ezi was up in the air, and above their heads, Shadow and Sonic could hear weapons clashing against one another, and Ezi landed on the tree branch parallel to them above. Behind her, a tall man dressed in purple with dark eye glasses and a covered mouth appeared, and placed a kunai around her neck. He grasped her other arm with his hand firmly.

"What the-?" Sonic gasped. "L-let her go!"

"Hand over your scroll, to my comrade, or I will slit her throat, and we'll take the scroll by force."

Shadow and Sonic were frozen. Another man with clear glasses in a purple jump suit with half of his face covered also appeared on the tree branch beside them, his hand out towards them.

"Come on, hand it over." He said.

"Take one wrong step and this brat's a goner." He pressed the kunai into her neck.

She swallowed, and looked at Shadow, and nodded.

He threw his chaos spear attack at the other guy with his hand out, and as Sonic looked back up, deciding to run up the tree as fast as he could before the other ninja could harm her, he watched Ezi flip the man over her shoulder, prior to having had whacked his kunai away from her throat.

The man went falling down, but he landed on the branch below and disappeared again, he and his comrade both. Ezi leaped off the branch and slid beside Sonic and Shadow, and they could see the two ninja had appeared on the tree above them again.

One of them threw a kunai, and all three of them jumped away. There was a paper bomb on it, and the branch exploded. Shadow swung over to the trunk, and ran across to the other side. Sonic and Ezi leapt off the branches to the other side as well, and the two ninja were on a higher tree following them.

"Hold on!"

Before anyone else could strike, another figure blurred into view in front of the other two shinobi.

"Kabuto?" Sonic recognized.

"Ah, so these were the ninja you were tailing this whole time." He said to his comrades in violet.

"Yes, but the brats have more skill than we realized." One of them noted.

"Ah, I saw, they foiled your plan…" Kabuto looked down at them. "Impressive."

"I saw them tailing us yesterday. I warned Shadow about it last night." Ezi said.

Sonic blinked a few times.

"I see. Then if comrades were following you, you must have a heaven scroll?"

"Two, actually." She said.

"What a coincidence." In Kabuto's hand, two scrolls appeared. "We have two earth scrolls, now."

Shadow and Sonic's eyes were glued to the scrolls.

"It seems we have a form of condition to consider." He continued, seriously. He was different from the kind Kabuto who had asked her out before.

"It seems we do." She folded her arms.

"We have two strategies. The first, we can continue brawling around this tree, injuring and possibly killing one another until we get the others' scrolls. The other option…"

"We could trade." Shadow said.

"Exactly. While I'd prefer the latter, what do you say?"

Sonic was still thinking about the attack. Not only had Ezi defended herself, but she had noticed their attack before even he had.

"Hmph. I don't trust this guy." Shadow whispered.

"He did just stop us from fighting." Ezi added. "He could have snuck up on us or let us continue in trying to kill each other."

"Time is of the essence. Your answer?" Kabuto pressed.

Ezi stood tall. "We'll trade, only if you swear by your shinobi way you won't try any ticks, that your scroll is real, and you won't try attacking us again."

"Of course, only if you swear too."

"I do." She answered quickly.

"Then, so do I." He said. He looked over at the next tree. "Let's trade on neutral ground."

He and Ezi moved to the next tree, on the same branch. They held out their scrolls, and with the opposite hand, traded their scrolls at the same time.

"Okay." He said.

"Okay." She replied. "Thank you."

"Don't mention it." He nodded. "That was quick and painless. I apologize for my squad mates attacking you. They're a bit more prone to barbaric strategies."

"It's okay, we are in a survival test, after all."

He nodded. "Then, I wish you luck on making it to the tower."

"You too."

Kabuto disappeared, as did his comrades. When Ezi couldn't sense them anymore, she relaxed.

"Alright!" Sonic cheered. Ezi put the earth and heaven scroll in her pouch on her belt.

"That was… really lucky." She said.

"Hmph, I still don't like that guy. He and his comrades were all up to something." Shadow folded his arms.

"I don't know, I kinda like him. He decided to bargain rather than fight." Sonic scratched the bottom of his nose.

"Well, in this case, it worked out for both of our teams." She said, smiling down at the scrolls.

"The plan I had to wait at the tower… I'm sure there will be others waiting for teams with scrolls as well."

"We still have a few days, maybe we could find the others?" Ezi suggested.

"I hope they're okay." Sonic yawned. "Come on, let's speed out of here!"

Shadow seemed to do most of the leading, tracking moss and using the wind to point them in the right direction. When night came, they were hungry and tired.

"We'll take turns keeping watch." Ezi decided.

"Great! I'll go first."

"I don't need rest. I can stay up." Shadow said.

"Quit showing off with your life form survivor skills." Sonic teased.

"What, jealous because you weren't sharp when Kabuto's team attacked us?"

"Hey, I cold have handled them without you here!"

"Get some rest, Sonic." Ezi was leaning on a tree, resting out on the branch above them.

He wouldn't have admitted it, but he was tired. They were all tired, from lack of protein and normal eating, and the entire running in the humidity and thick forest didn't assist either.

The explosion in the night caused a stir. They all sat up from their drowned focused thoughts and looked west.

"It sounded close." Sonic's triangular ear twitched.

"So? We're not going over there are we?" Ezi stood and stared passed the trunk and trees forward.

"What if its our friends, and they're in trouble?" Insisted Sonic. "I'm just gonna take a quick look."

"Sonic-!"

The blue blur was gone, leaving kicked up leaves and dust behind his trail.

"We have to follow him!"

"Why?" Shadow didn't budge, keeping his arm folded with a pale look. "If he wants to get killed, let him. For all we know it could be a trap."

"At least pretend to care." Ezi rolled her eyes. "If something does happen to him, you'll be disqualified too."

"…Let's go."

They followed behind as quickly as they could. Shadow skated across the dirt and grass, and Ezi stayed fairly close behind through the treetops as they caught up to Sonic. He was still running, straight ahead and determined to beat his comrades to whatever scene they were about to unfold to.

"Sonic, stop!" Ezi tried to whisper, but made it loud enough for him to hear. "You guys would do better on higher ground."

"Good idea!" Sonic kept zooming fast, and ran up a tree, with Shadow not too far behind. They began hopping through the branches until they were at a clearing where the noises were coming from.

"Hey, that noise must have been that big guy from the exams." Sonic had already analyzed the scene. The sound ninja that had attacked Kabuto was there with his other comrades in periwinkle and grey camo uniforms; one was a man with spiked black hair, and the other was a woman with her long black hair tied at the bottom. Rock Lee was face down near them, a few meters from where Sonic, Shadow and Ezi were hovering over the scene in the trees near the east.

Choji was dizzy, sitting beside Shikamaru who was holding Ino up, as she was unconscious for some reason. In front of them, Sakura was on her knees, bruised and cut-up intensely, with a swollen eye and her pink hair looked as if it had been ripped off. They were beside a wide green tree with large roots that Sasuke and Naruto were lying asleep under. They both had cloths on their foreheads, and they were covered in dried blood and dirt and bruises.

"What on earth is going on?" Ezi said horrified. "Did those sound ninja attack the leaf ninja?"

"Naruto and his group are in trouble, we gotta help!" Sonic whispered back.

"You moron, we can't get involved." Shadow said firmly.

"Shadow, it's risky, but we can't leave Naruto and his friends to die." Ezi replied.

"Then, what are we waiting for?" Sonic stood up from his hunched space on the branch.

"Don't you dare!" Ezi grabbed his leg firmly enough to keep him balanced. "We wait until we know for certain they need our help. We are still in the exams after all. I trust Naruto, maybe, but I don't trust Shikamaru's team, and especially not the sound, they could try to take the scroll from us or track us after this."

"She has a point." Agreed Shadow.

"Nooo, I'm not waiting! It's my least favorite thing to do!"

"Well, ninjas have to be sneaky and wait to get the job done!" Ezi insisted.

"I'm not a ninja, I'm a hedgehog!"

They were interrupted and turned their attention to the sound ninja leader that had began to yell.

"Hah! Coming out of the wood like cockroaches, eh?"

"Uh-oh, spotted!" Sonic said, but their eyes and body positions weren't facing Sonic and his friends. They were looking westward, to the two other genin from the Hidden Leaf that appeared: Lee's teammates, Neji Hyuuga and Ten-Ten.

"It looks to me that somebody used our teammate as a punching bag." Neji was speaking to the sound ninja, mockingly, referring to Lee.

"NO ONE DOES THAT AND GETS AWAY WITH IT!" Neji's eyes were pale, and you everyone from their distance form him could see the veins that were pulsing towards his eyeballs. The sound ninja stood stiff.

"No more playing around Ten-Ten; full power!" Neji declared. The girl with two buns beside him seemed sharp and ready.

"Wait, what's wrong?" Ten-Ten suddenly asked him.

"Well, are you going to stay up there all day or are you going to come down and do something about it?" The sound ninja taunted.

"Actually, it looks like it might have been taken out of my hands." Neji said coolly.

"Guys… look at the Uchiha boy Sasuke." Shadow nodded towards the bottom of the tree, where everyone's eyes seemed to glue towards next.

"Sasuke, you're awake!" Sakura said cheerfully.

Sonic felt panic.

He wasn't scared of the aura, in fact, it felt familiar. Somewhere from the deep darkness he had drowned in before.

They watched him stand up loosely, with his arms dangling in front of him and his head hanging down.

"That's, Sasuke's power?" He managed to say.

Ezi looked at Sakura, who was just as stunned as they were. "No, something's wrong with Sasuke."

The dirt around him was cut up into the swirling black and violet chakra that spiraled around him. There was a glowing, fiery pattern that moved across his skin, and when he opened his eyes the red Sharingan glared ahead viciously.

"Sakura…" He said lowly.

"Do you think he's gone crazy?" Ezi wondered.

"Get ready to spring into action and pull Sakura and Naruto out of there if he has." Shadow ordered.

"Sakura… who did this to you?" He continued. "Who was it?"

"Sasuke… what's, what's happened to you?" Sakura stammered.

"Don't worry, I'm alright." He stood up straight. "It's only the power flowing through me. In fact… I've never felt better. That guy gave me this gift, and he made me understand what I am. An avenger. In order for me to continue my path, I must have power, at any price; even if means being consumed by evil."

"Consumed by… evil?" Sonic grimaced. "What happened to this kid that he went to the dark side?"

"I knew I didn't like him." Ezi nodded proudly. Still, they watched the scene unfold.

"Sakura," Sasuke said again, "tell me who did this to you."

"That'd be me!" The black spikey-haired sound ninja proclaimed. He had a smug grin on his face as he watched Sasuke move his head in his direction.

Shikamaru was waving at Choji and the sound ninja girl to hide in the bushes with him. She made a symbol with her hands together and then suddenly passed out. Choji, Shikamru and Ino watched as the black markings on Sasuke's face spread across his features entirely.

"Dozu, you're not getting cold feet on me, are you?" The spikey haired sound ninja asked the leader.

"No, Zaku, you don't understand!" Dozu replied desperately. He seemed to understand what was going on the most.

"Just watch!" Zaku bragged. "I'll take care of all of them in one foul swoop!" He raised his hands out towards Sakura, Sasuke, and Naruto's spot.

"That's our cue!" Sonic was already gone, zooming in that direction.

"Super Sonic Slicing Wave!" Zaku declared his attack, and a powerful wind attack from the holes in his hands cut through the air like a giant explosion blowing and slicing through everything in its wake.

Ezi noticed both hedgehogs were gone, but she could only take cover behind the tree trunk, as the attack kept everyone on their toes with a harsh burst of wind and rocks. When the attack cleared, only a hole in the ground remained where Sasuke, Sakura and Naruto had been standing.

"Ha! Looks like I took care of it!" Zaku lowered his hands, and his guard.

"Don't count on it." Sasuke was suddenly beside him, and he whacked Zaku casually in the side of his face, causing the sound ninja to roll towards the feet of Dozu.

"He's fast!" Dozu was startled at every move Sasuke made.

Ezi looked around. She could see Shadow and Sonic were standing beside Sakura and Naruto, who they must have helped move out of the way of the attack.

Sasuke quickly threw a few hand signs together. "Fire Style: Phoenix Flower Jutsu!" He blew shots of fire that sprayed towards Zaku, who tried to put the flames out using a lesser a wind attack. The flames went out, but somehow Sasuke had used shurikens in the attack, and they spun and cut through Zaku.

"Hey, get down!" Dozu tried to warn him, but it was too late; Sasuke was behind him in seconds. He threw Zaku down onto his knees, and placed his foot on his back, pulling his arms back. Now, Zaku was terrified.

"You seem to be very proud of these arms of yours." Sasuke smiled wildly, sinisterly. "You must be very attached to them." He pulled on his arms a little more.

"No! What are you doing? Stop it!" Zaku cried out.

Sasuke pulled and pulled, until.

Snap.

It happened in a second. Sasuke had pulled his arms back and pushed on his abck so quickly, he must have yanked Zaku's arms out of their sockets, and he fell forward, knocked out, probably form shock of the pain of his arms being broken.

"It looks like you're the only one left." Sasuke began walking towards Dozu.

"Dude…" Sonic stared mesmerized. "What do we do?"

"That boy is dangerous, we do nothing." Shadow decided.

All the while, Sakura looked as if she were about to cry. The boy she liked—was in love with, was a mad killing machine.

"Stooop!" She leapt from her weakened state and ran towards his back.

"Be careful, Sakura!" Sonic warned. The girl wrapped her arms around him from behind, pressing herself into his back.

"Don't do it." She cried. "Please, stop…" She wept and wept, and for a few seconds nothing happened. Then, the black swirling marks on Sasuke turned to fire again, but receded back until they were gone.

Sakura and Sasuke both fell down, and he seemed to catch his breath as he sat down.

"You're strong Sasuke." Dozu said to them. "Probably too strong for us right now. I'll make you a deal: we'll give you our scroll if you let us go." Dozu carefully placed the scroll on the ground at his feet.

He went to pick up Zaku. "It would seem we underestimated you. But at least we found out what we needed to know."

"What they needed to know about what?" Sonic whispered.

"Shh, they're probably talking about Sasuke's power." Shadow answered.

Dozu continued as he lifted up the girl on his team to his waist with his other arm. "We'll withdraw for now. But the next time we meet in combat we won't run or hide."

"Wait!" Sakura called out to Dozu as he walked away. "Who is this Orochimaru? What id that mark he gave Sasuke? And, why Sasuke?"

"I don't know." Dozu said, annoyed, and he walked on.

"Hey… you guys okay?" Choji asked from his hiding spot in the bushes. Shikamaru ran to Sasuke and Sakura, and Ino raced to Lee. Ezi dropped down form the tree near him, and Ino stopped running and stepped back.

"Hey, the ninja from the Sun!" Ino alerted.

"Its okay, they helped us." Sakura said tiredly.

"I'll help you get Lee up." Ezi said. They grabbed him from both sides and lifted him up by his arms over their shoulders as they stood back up.

Shikamaru thought that they did help Sasuke move his comrades in time of that wind attack, and they certainly weren't attacking now, so they seemed amiable for now.

He and Choji hovered over Naruto, who was bright red as he dreamed.

"Sakura's in danger… don't worry Sakura, I'll save you."

"Can I kick him first?" Choji asked jokingly.

Naruto was probably having some kind of dream of protecting Sakura from this enemy they called Orochimaru, when Choji decided to whack him with a stick over his head to wake him up. He screamed like he had awoken from a nightmare.

"Sakura, Sakura, Sakura!" Naruto leapt up and rolled towards his comrades. Shikamaru, Choji, Sonic and Shadow walked over to them.

"what happened to your hair?" He asked.

She grabbed the ends of her harshly trimmed air. "Oh, this? I just thought I'd get a new hair style. I like my long hair, but its hard to run with it through the trees like this."

That was clearly a fake story. Ezi wondered what they had missed that made her so bloodied and bruised in the face before.

"Hey, Sonic is here too!" Naruto declared.

"'Sup, Naruto?" Sonic gave them a thumb-up and a wink.

"What the heck happened anyway? How come you're all here?"

"Man, explaining everything to you is gonna be such a pain." Shikamru complained to Naruto.

"They just came to help us out!" Sakura said cheerily.

"Sakura is sure putting on a brave face." Ino said quietly.

Ten-Ten hopped down from the tree. "I'll take care of him now, Ino."

"Oh, okay." The girls handed him to Ten-Ten, who grabbed him by the shoulders... Then began shaking him violently.

"COME ON LEE PULL YOURSELF TOGETHER! SNAP OUT OF IT ALREADY, ALRIGHT?"

He fell back into a sitting position. "Ten-Ten is that you?" He groaned, waking up. Ten-Ten knelt in front of him.

"Yeah, we're here. Sasuke took care of the ninja. What were you thinking trying to fight those three sound all on your own?"

"Well, I had to protect Sakura, right?"

"That was pretty stupid, you know."

"I guess I can't argue there."

"Well, at least you guys are okay." Ezi placed her hands behind her head, pleased. The others gathered around, and Naruto jumped towards Lee.

"WHAT'S UP, BUSHY BROW?" He said, making an obnoxious face. Sakura came up from the side and socked him in the cheek.

"NARUTO, YOU BETTER NOT MAKE FUN OF LEE, YOU HEAR ME?" He went flying rolling, but Sakura didn't seem to care.

"Ouch." Sonic snickered.

"Lee, thank you." Sakura said to him. "Because of you I was able to get a little stronger.

Lee wept a little, dramatically, but no tears fell. "Thank you, Sakura. But I guess my efforts alone weren't strong enough." He looed to Sasuke. "I suppose your reputation proceeds you, being an Uchiha. You took were able to send those sound ninja running. But not me; I was beaten to a pulp."

Sasuke seemed shocked himself, for a moment.

Lee looked positively back towards the girl. "Sakura, the Lotus of the Leaf blooms twice."

"Huh?"

"When we meet again, I will have become a stronger man." He assured.

"Okay." Sakura said with a smile.

"Hey, billboard brow!" Ino called out to her. "I want to fix your hair cut for you!"

Sakura decided to go to her old friend and get patched up.

"Let's go, Lee." Ten-Ten said, and looked over and Sonic, Ezi, and Shadow.

"Uh-oh, is there something on my face?" Sonic asked in a fake panic.

"No, it's just… I know you helped our village out, but why did you help Sasuke and his friends?"

"Oh, that's easy." Sonic pointed to Naruto, who was standing up from Sakura's sharp punch. "The annoying orange over there is a friendly acquaintance of ours."

"I see." Ten-Ten affirmed. "I suppose if you were the enemy, you wouldn't have gone through the trouble of helping leaf ninja. You didn't have to get involved. In fact, you could have struck while they were busy with the sound."

"That does sound like a sneaky ninja move." Ezi analyzed.

"But not us!" Sonic insisted.

"Thanks to all of you for protecting each other." Lee said, bowing his head a bit. The Sun team nodded back.

"What a drag." Shikamaru mumbled. "We better not have to fight them for scrolls later."

"Yes, that would be bothersome." Shadow overheard him.

Shikamaru looked at him, surprised. _Man, these guys are weird looking. But, they did help Naruto's team…_

"Ino, let's go. All this did was tire us out more than needed." Shikamaru proclaimed.

"Yeah-yeah, I'm coming!" Ino put the knife away she used to cut Sakura's hair, then she left with her team. Ten-Ten and Lee hurried of with Neji as well.

"You guys gonna be okay?" Sonic asked Naruto.

"We'll be fine! We made it this far, haven't we? Believe it!"

"I like your spirit, despite being knocked out by those sound ninja." Sonic said, folding his arms.

"I don't know what you're talking about! But, this creepy snake lady is who I was fighting before!"

Ezi gasped. "The one who had that long in the beginning of the second exams?"

"Yeah. But it was more like a him." Sakura said seriously. "Thanks for helping us out when you showed up."

"No problemo!" Sonic said.

"If you bump into a snake man named Orochimaru, please do yourself a favor and run. He's powerful, and… maybe not worth fighting in this exam. He's on a whole other level."

"Orochimaru? Did he attack you guys too?" Ezi asked.

"Yeah, well, the thing is…"

"That's enough, Sakura." Sasuke interrupted. "You've given them too much information already."

"You're welcome for back there, by the way." Sonic retorted.

"Yeah. Well, because you helped my team, just like the others, I won't fight you for your scroll for now."

"Yeah, right." Shadow said smugly. "You are too tired to fight us, that's why you won't battle."

Sasuke smirked. "Nothing gets passed you, how quick of you to notice."

Then, Ezi shifted her sword to a bow and arrow, and pointed it at Sasuke.

"What? What are you doing, Ezi?" Sonic demanded.

Sasuke glared at her, then he moved out of the way, and Ezi shot the arrow.

The giant beetle horned black beetle that had been crawling to Sasuke from behind was shot between the eyes. It made a terrible screeching noise as it wiggled and writhed, then collapsed.

Sakura shrieked and shivered. "Oh, man! That's so gross!"

"We should probably leave this area. I'm sure all the noise from your battle drew some of nature's attention." Ezi's bow morphed back into a sword and disappeared.

"G-good idea." Naruto stammered.

Sasuke still glared at them. He still didn't trust them. True they were keeping a secret, but not a dangerous one.

"Let's go." Shadow ordered.

"Good luck on your quest, Naruto." Sonic waved.

"You too, hedgehog!"

Then, the team parted ways.

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~…~

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Sonic, Shadow and Ezi took off through the green mesh, treading on the thick branches and giant wood as they hurried to their destination. It had been a little over a day since they saw Naruto's team. They stopped 2 kilometers before they reached the tower.

Shadow kept his eyes closed and his arms folded.

"Why are we stopping? We could zoom into the tower before anyone tries to attack us!" Sonic was waving his arms around in frustration.

"Yes, let's run straight into the tower and pull 50 traps and bombs set up there, waiting for us." Ezi's remark caused Sonic to look dully.

"I can't sense anything." Shadow said. "If someone is hiding, they're doing a good job at it, hiding even their chakra."

"That's possible." Ezi said.

"Chakra-shmakra," Sonic wailed, "we gonna get passed this test or not?"

There was a rustling in the trees behind them. Then, jaws.

The three of them spun around to face the enormous horned lizard. It had to be 200 feet high, with shimmering defiant scales and beady black eyes. It squealed as each leg lifted itself closer towards them, knocking over the trees.

"Oh." Sonic grinned. "Sonic wind!" He casted his ferocious, cutting wind onto the lizard's back, but the wind lapped over the defense.

"Chaos Spear!" The yellow arrows of energy bounced off; one of them had nearly struck Ezi. She jumped up and attempted to whack the lizard with her Phantom Gem. The lizards head moved to the right, barely, then it stuck its tongue out as it looked back down at them.

"Um, retreat?" Sonic started running first. As amusing as it would be to try and take down a giant lizard, it wasn't worth the time.

The lizard began marching after them, creating a storm of shattered plants and heavy dust as it swiveled after them. They ran through the grass, and up ahead, Shadow could see three grass ninja with masks on waiting for them in a bush, just a kilometer away from the tower.

"Keep going. Chaos Spear!" He threw it at the bush, and the three shinobi zoomed out into the scattered air. When they saw the lizard, their horrified faces vanished as they retreated.

"Hey, this lizard could knock down the tower!" Sonic realized. He spun and formed a curved line in the grass.

"Sonic!" Ezi and Shadow stopped as well. "We could try striking it's under belly!"

The lizard continued towards them, they split up into three directions.

Shadow shot his chaos spear at it's face. Sonic jumped onto tis tail and ran up its back. He creature began to halt as it could feel him there. Ezi darted forward, sliding into the grass and dirt feet first. She yelled out triumphantly as she raised her sword and cut through the lizard's belly as she continued to slid under it and finally onto the other side of it. She hit a tree root and went flying, but Shadow grabbed her by the hand and threw her into another direction before she could hit the tree.

Sonic hopped off the hissing lizard as its bowels and body collapsed forward, dust settling. It was quiet.

"Whoo-hoo! Good job-!"

"Let's get to the tower!" Shadow warned. They raced to the tower that they were now so close to. There was anxiety and thrill in all of them as they reached the door and rolled in, sweaty, panting. All three of them were sprawled on the floor.

Sonic looked over at Ezi. He thought about how sharp she had been at the attack, and how she was able to keep up with him and Shadow. Things were changing, not just from transitions of worlds, either.

She sat up. "We made it, and with both scrolls." She held them out.

"Do we meet Anko here or something?"

"She said not to open the scrolls until we got here." Shadow reminded. "So, we should open them now, right?"

Ezi examined the inner sanction of the tower: the first floor they were on was a rectangular, bare space, with only pillars, shiny tile, and doors that led back out into the forest on every wall. There was a staircase that led up to the next room across from them.

"We should open them now, to finalize that we've made it to the tower."

Shadow opened one scroll, and Sonic, the other.

"What the heck is this writing? I can't read it!" He said.

The scrolls began shaking, and they both dropped it. A large burst of white smoke filled the space around the scrolls.

When the dust cleared, Sonic was choking, and Ezi realized they were in a lot of trouble.

"Sonic!" Amy wailed. She kept her arms around his neck, despite his desperate grasps for air.

"A-Amy?"

"Sonic, you made it!" Tails said. Had they both appeared from the scroll?

Shadow's eyes were fixed on the other character that had been summoned.

"Hi." Kakashi said casually to them. "We need to talk."


	6. Scroll 6: Preliminaries Start!

Hello! If you have read, please let me know and what i can do to improve my writing. Also

Scroll 6: Preliminaries Start!

With all of the screaming they had heard the night before, seeing giant bugs and flying shinobi not notice them was a blessing.

Inuyasha chopped down a few giant centipedes and crickets. Sango had slain many beetles and bugs of enormous absolute, and Miroku had whacked and destroyed medium frogs and flies.

They were hungry.

As they were settling on a viney tree lapped with green and blue leaves, Miroku had fried a rat, and they were sharing pango and sour fruits.

"How have we seen so many bugs but hardly any shinobi?" Inuyasha demanded to no one in particular.

"I'm not sure," Sango said, "maybe they've all gone to the tower already."

"Nay, we can't be too late." Miroku denied. "I say we head for the tower. If the ninja are going there, maybe we can catch one."

Inuyasha gurgled. "Let's face it! We have skill to survive this forest but not pass this stupid test! Let's hope the others had more luck."

When they finished eating and supplying freshness, they continued on the quiet road.

Inuyasha sniffed the air. "Damn, I smell blood."

They treaded quietly through the thick heap of bushes until they spotted a patch of clearing and sun. Amongst the verdant circling were drops of dry, dark red blood, and then, as they sunk closer to it, chunks of red, scattered everywhere.

"Oh," Sango covered her face with her mask, quickly. "It's a dead body."

Miroku and Inuyasha covered their mouths with their hands. "No way, these are humans." Inuyasha stepped around the meat piles and flies.

"How can this be human? They were… ripped apart." Sango realized.

"No, it's like they were crushed, smashed up, imploded." Miroku said. "The blood's everywhere, and there's not a limb here that isn't covered in blood."

"What the hell could have done this to them?" Inuyasha asked.

Miroku knelt down and guided his fingertips along the clean sand. "There's mixed sand here, too."

"Mixed?" Sango interjected.

"There's the dirt soil that we've seen throughout the forest, but in this spot only, there's some grains of sand that are similar to that of beach sand, or sand you see in the middle east desert."

Inuyasha blinked. "What are you saying? That they were crushed by sand?"

"It's meshed in with some of the… parts." Miroku gagged, lightly. "But, I don't know what could have done this."

"When I think of sand… I think of those sand ninja Ezi and Sonic warned us about." Sango hopped over the last chunk until they were all out of the clearing, merely looking back at the massacre.

"If they did do this… we don't want to mess with them." Inuyasha decided.

For several more hours, they walked and drank dew from the downward leaves, discussing strategies and what to do.

"Maybe we'll find a group we can tackle at the tower…" Miroku hushed his voice.

"Even so, they'd be ready to kill us for our scroll." Sango gripped the band around her torso. "Miroku, could you kill those kids like Sephiroth did, even if they are shinobi?"

He swallowed down the dryness. They continued sweating from the humidity and walking the miles.

"Hey, how much do we-"

A shriek in the green interrupted Inuyasha's question.

"Do you hear that?" His new question.

"The cry for help? Yes."

"No, not that! It's like something is moving the earth." His ear twitched as he knelt down to touch the soil.

The scream happened again, and Kirara began growling.

"It's coming from the west of us." Sango hopped over the small plants and bushes in that direction.

"Hey, wait!" They ran through the thickness into the screaming chaos approaching, and the earth movement grew louder and louder.

Sango looked up to see a shinobi hopping through the trees, but she stepped on a skinny branch and she went toppling down beside her, making a loud _oomph_ as she platted the floor.

"Are you okay?" Sango helped the whimpering girl up.

"J-Jiyoka is…" Black tears streamed down her dirty cheeks. She screamed again. "We have to go! We'll be next!"

"Damn, it's coming…" Inuyasha and Miroku were fixed on the marching thing crushing passed the trees.

They noticed the praying mantis had red all over its green shell of a face. It must have just munched on the shinobi's comrade.

"Not this thing again!" Miroku held up his staff, recalling when he had to face a similar demon in the feudal era.

"Wind Scar!" The Tetsaiga's energy was released by a single whip, and it casted a white, tearing gust onto the mantis. It swooned backwards and fell onto its side with a loud _crash!_

"Hey, it's okay." Sango said to her.

"Jiyoka was over confident…" The girl explained. "He thought he could take on the bug when it attacked us, but…"

"I am sorry for the loss of your comrade." Miroku said, sadly.

"It's… It's normal for ninja to lose their lives, but… why do I feel so sad?"

"Screw that ninja way stuff." Inuyasha approached, putting his sword back in his sheath. "He was still someone you knew and trained with. It's normal to feel sad about it."

"I'll pray for his soul to rest peacefully for you." Miroku held up his hand to his chest.

"I'll… thank you. But, why is a monk in the forest of death?"

"Well, we're in the exams, too." Sango explained.

"I see." To Sango's wary, the girl slipped her hand into her pocket and pulled out a scroll. "This is for all of you, then. For avenging my comrade, and saving my life."

Inuyasha turned around to see the scroll. It was the one they had needed. "Yes!"

"Thank you, but we couldn't take it." Sango insisted.

"My comrade is dead, so my other comrade and I will not be able to pass anyway. Please."

Sango gently gripped the scroll. "Thank you."

As they exchanged, the mantis arose again, fully awake and with zeal.

"What?" Inuyasha pulled out his sword again, but as it arose, its front claws were clamoring down on Sango and the girl. Sango wrapped her hiraikotsu around herself and the girl, and Kirara was darting towards her to push them out of the way.

"Wind tunnel!" The claw whammed into Miroku's palm as his cursed suction of power began to absorb the squealing mantis.

Kirara had picked Sango and the girl up, and they stayed behind Miroku until the mantis was completely gone, sucked in to the void in Miroku's hand. He fell to his knees.

"No, Miroku!" Sango cried.

He could feel his body getting warmer, the poison of the mantis consuming him already.

"I'm alright." He said. "It was just a heavy bug, that's all!"

"You don't feel sick?"

"I…I feel a bit tired." He admitted. Inuyasha ran to help his friend from falling, and so did someone else who appeared.

"Sonic?" Sango exclaimed.

"I'll help you. You guys, follow me!"

"Where is everyone else?" Inuyasha demanded.

"I'll explain later, dog boy. Let's go!"

Inuyasha and Sonic jumped into the tree branches to hop from them while they carried Miroku together. Sango followed behind with Kirara and the girl until they entered the tower.

"I'm okay now, really." Miroku showed them by walking normally a bit.

They realized they were in a small, bare room. Tails, Amy, Shadow, Sonic, Ezi, and a jonin named Kakashi were there with them.

"Guys..?" Inuyasha looked at all of them. "What are you doing here?"

"Inuyasha, open up your scrolls." Shadow stated.

Sango looked at the scrolls in her hand, then handed them to Inuyasha. When he opened both scrolls, Shippo and Kagome appeared from the smoke.

"Inuyasha!" Shippo wrapped his tiny fingers around his neck.

Kagome was wearing a sun headband on her forehead.

"What the-?" He looked back and forth at them both. "What the hell are you doing here?"

"I can explain." Kakashi said. "You see, I summoned them here."

"You did? How?"

"Ah, before I do, allow me to escort you out. I'm sorry you didn't pass." Kakashi noticed the kunoichi behind Sango.

"Yes." The girl nodded. Kakashi grabbed her shoulder and they both disappeared. A few seconds later, Kakashi reappeared by himself.

"Alright, what's going on?" Inuyasha was tapping his foot.

"For each team, their squad leader is meant to pop out and tell them they passed the second exam. When you enter the tower, there's a symbol at the door that makes the scrolls accustom to the team that enters. In this case, it was your friends."

"How did you know about them?" Sango demanded.

"He knows everything." Shadow said.

"What?" Inuyasha yelled. "That means..!"

The room was quiet.

"Hey, it's okay." Sonic grinned. "Like I said, I like Kakashi, and those of us who made it are still part of the exam!"

"How? We've been…. Found out, haven't we?" Miroku asked.

"Oh, you were found out," Kakashi answered, "too easily, actually."

Kagome sighed. "After the first exam, Kakashi followed you all out of the village and found the Blue Typhoon."

"You sneaky bastard!" Inuyasha snarled.

"Well, we thought so too." Ezi added. "He appeared when we got here inside of the tower, with Tails and Amy. They explained that when he found them they told him the truth about who we are."

"Really? Then you know we're not an outside village?" Sango asked the jonin.

"Yep." He said. He was casual, his hands in his pockets.

"Then, why don't you turn us into the Anbu and Hokage? Why are we all still here?" Miroku asked.

"Well, let's just say I've never met anything like you before, people from the stars. I wouldn't have believed it if I hadn't seen the ship myself." Kakashi explained. "You see, we have technology in this world, but none that has been so advanced that we could create a vessel that could fly into the sky, beyond the moon and sun. Your little friends here explained to me why you were here, fighting the foreign demons, and why you all had entered the exams. It made sense."

"What the hell?" Inuyasha yelled. "So because it made sense you're just gonna let us keep going?"

"Don't act so grateful," Kakashi was being sarcastic, "you all have shown you're intentions to our village are good. Even if you're not a real ninja nation yourselves, we can still be allies, like the Hokage wants. You still have to prove yourselves in these exams that you can represent yourself as an allied nation before the Hokage can sign any treaty with you, and so far you have done just that. There are still more tests to face, however, and if you want to return home, you'll need to continue on."

"I don't like this! I still don't get why you're helping us!" Inuyasha squinted.

"Inuyasha, he's letting you guys continue because he's being nice to us, that's all!" Kagome enlightened.

"Yeah, I guess that makes more sense." Kakashi agreed. "I heard you helped my students against some irritable sand ninja in our village, too. Aside from trying to stop the demon, you all seem to be involved in helping others just for the sake of it. Whether it's to make yourselves feel good, or as a sense of duty you have to protect others, I admire it."

"Thanks again, Kakashi." Sonic winked.

"So… that's it, then? We passed the second exam and can move on?" Sango clarified.

"Yep. Congratulations." Kakashi said.

"Yay! Good job, everyone!" Shippo cheered.

"Whoa, finally, I was getting tired in that forest." Miroku admitted.

"Wait, you didn't explain why you let our friends appear in the summoning too, Kakashi." Ezi realized.

"Oh, yes. They haven't announced it yet, but once the other teams get to the tower, you'll be entering the 3rd exam, which will involve a test where the proctors and squad leaders will be allowed to view the fight. I brought them here so they could see you all in the 3rd part."

"Yeah, we'll support you guys anyway we can!" Tails declared.

"Kakashi, are you planning on telling your Hokage leader about us?" Shadow wanted to know.

"Well, maybe someday I will, when you all leave this place to your real home. Although, I haven't figured it out yet entirely to be honest. You see, there are more complicated issues that we're dealing with inside the forest that you couldn't possibly comprehend. These issues are more important than a crew of good fighters trying to make their way through the exam."

"Are you talking about _Orochimaru_?"

Everyone gasped when they heard the other party appear behind them all. From the entranceway, Sora and Cloud were using each other as support, and Knuckles was in front of them.

"You guys made it!" Ezi proclaimed.

"Well, I'm impressed." Kakashi noted. "You may not be shinobi, but you've all certainly done well. So, you heard about him?"

"In the forest, yeah." Cloud stated. "He attacked your team, but they made it out okay. We heard it from another team."

"And then after that we had to fight this giant beetle! And we got a scroll from these collectors who tried to steal ours but Cloud was all _swoosh! Bang_! And Knuckles was all _punch, Bonk_! And I whooped butt too. It was awesome!"

"Thank you for clarifying that, Sora." Ezi chuckled. "I'm glad you all got here on time."

"You heard about Orochimaru in the forest, too?" Shadow asked. "He seems like he's notorious."

"Yeah, I guess he attacked Naruto's team too."

"What?" Kakashi sounded shocked.

"D-don't worry!" Ezi told him. "They were okay when we left them. They ahd just needed to find another scroll."

"I see. Well, yes, Orochimaru is back. So you see, we have our own S-rank criminals to worry about."

"Well, I hope Naruto and his team make it here, too." Sonic gave Kakashi a thumb-up.

"Oh, I know they'll get here." He waved his hand. "Anyway, I have other things to attend to. Good luck with everything else. Oh, and just to be clear, all I can do is keep your secret for a while. If anyone else finds out, it's on you."

Ezi nodded. "R-right. Thank you again!"

Kakashi disappeared in a puff of smoke from the room.

"Whoa, I can't believe we all made it here!" Sonic cheered.

"I'm surprised your goofing off didn't get you stuck in a rut, Sonic." Knuckles commented.

"Hm? Oh, I see. You're upset we got here first, huh?"

"What? Shut up!"

"Sora, you should open your scrolls too." Ezi looked to him.

Cloud and Sora stood up straight, more recovered from their adventure, and placed the scrolls and ground and rolled them out. Donald and Goofy appeared.

"WHAT?" Donald yelped.

"Shucks, we were just on the Gummi Ship! Next thing you know, we're here!"

"Donald, Goofy!" Sora hugged them. "I missed you guys!"

"Waugh! It's only been a few days!" Donald quacked, trying to struggle from Sora's tight embrace.

"Where are Cream and Rouge?" Ezi asked.

"They elected to stay and keep an eye on the ship." Tails explained. "Cream will call me if anyone finds the ships. Besides, I wanted to update you guys on how the repairs were going!"

The group decided to rest in the waiting room. The they took turns cleaning up in the restroom a little, drinking from the sink water, washing off the dirt and wounds they had gathered from the second exam.

They sat in a circle and discussed what had happened to each of them in the exam, discussing the giant bug fights, the encounters they had had with other shinobi like Kabuto and Sephiroth's group, and how they got their scrolls.

"If you saw Sephiroth get his scroll, then he passed the test, no question." Cloud elucidated what Inuyasha's group had seen.

"Yeah, that guy's dangerous, no doubt. He killed those genin ninja without any hesitation at all, and he was so fast." Inuyasha enlightened.

"Well, I'm glad you made it, Inuyasha." Kagome said blissfully.

"Yeah, and I'm glad that Kabuto fellow was so willing to work things out with your group, Sonic." Sango pointed out.

"Yeah. His comrades weren't so cool, but he did help us pass this last test."

"I'm hungry for some grub, but I guess we can't leave the tower yet." Miroku admitted.

"Oh! We brought some bars and snacks from the ship pantry!" Amy declared. "You guys should eat up before the next test!"

"Wow! You're a life-saver, Amy!" Knuckles' eyes lit up when he saw them drop the loads of food from their pouches and pockets.

"Got any chili dogs?" Sonic sifted through the non-perishable snacks. There were a few more hours left for the second exam to end. The group enjoyed each other's company and rested before they headed up to the next floor, where the second exam would end, and the key to getting home would begin.

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~…~

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.

.

Ezi looked out to Kakashi, whom she was eternally grateful too, and the other squad leaders in front of her, as well as Anko, Ibiki and the Hokage. The leaders were all erect jonin who stood in a line before the remaining teams that had survived the second exam. They were all in a large room, bigger than even a gym, and the leaders were standing in front of a statue of ninja hands making a hand sign, where the fingers were interlocked with one another and pointing upward. The floor was casted in large tile, and there were balconies on either side of them, where Tails, Amy, Kagome, Donald, Goofy, and Shippo were watching from the right of them above.

Everyone who had passed was lined up in a rectangle, but everyone also seemed to be looking around, to see who had survived.

"Naruto's team made it." Sonic whispered to Ezi, delighted. He, Ezi and Shadow were lined up in a vertical column, facing the leaders. They were behind the rookie nine, sound and sand teams that had made it.

Cloud spotted Sephiroth, Aritob, and Kadaj in the first row.

 _Why is he here, now?_

"Cloud?" Ezi said beside him. "Don't look so tense. It'll be okay."

He nodded. _Still, why is he following the rules of the exam? He could destroy everyone here if he wanted to. What is he planning?_

"It looks like all of the rookie nine made it." Kiba, the one with the dog, said.

His dog growled at the smell of Kirara, who was in Sango's yukata beside them.

"They're not a threat, Kirara." Sango petted the feline on its tiny head. She looked to Miroku, who was very pale.

"Look, Sasuke's team made it!" Ino noticed.

"They better have with all the work we put into helping them against those sound ninja freaks." Shikamaru replied.

Naruto was looking around until his eyes fixed on Sonic. "Hey!" He gave him a thumb-up, and Sonic responded with the same gesture.

Anko stood before the shinobi teams, with an eared microphone on her head.

"Alright you maggots! The second exam has finally come to an end! You have showed your capable of withstanding conditions behind enemy lines on a mission. And now, the Hokage will be addressing what you will be doing for the 3rd exam." She stepped down and the Hokage, dressed in his triangular red hat and white rob, stalked into the middle.

"As you all know, these exams are a means to show peace among our allied nations, as each represents their skill to the other in a series of tests. However, before we begin, I would like to tell you all the true meaning of the exams."

"True meaning?" Sango echoed.

"Hey, I thought the exams were just a test to move onto the chunin level with our allied nations?" Naruto proclaimed.

"Indeed, they are, but there's more to it than that. In these tests, those involved will be enduring rigorous tasks in which they are pushed to their limits and show their skill and pride of their nation. However…" He paused, inhaling some of his smoke pipe. "…These tests are to show who is superior among nations, showing each other the strength of their nation among opposing shinobi. Lords and important politicians will be watching the exams to see who they can rely on, and who they can hire for work. This is the opportunity for allies to fight amongst one another to show what they can do as a shinobi, and for work."

"Hold on, why would we want to show rivalry among the nations we're allied with? Aren't we supposed to be friends?" Ten-Ten, the girl on Rock Lee's team, asked.

"In the shinobi world, showing your strength and will against one another in battle is friendship."

"Well, I suppose it's better than sitting around a campfire, singing." Sonic whispered.

The proctor for the 3rd exam appeared in front of the Hokage. He had a cap on, dreary, baggy eyes, and wore a vest like the other jonin.

"Lord Hokage, allow me to explain the 3rd exam to everyone." He said, then coughed.

"Hm, very well." The Hokage stepped down.

"I am Gekko Hayate." He introduced, then hacked some more. "Now, allow me to explain what you will be doing for the 3rd exam. Before we begin the exam, we are going to have to have a preliminary exam right now."

"A preliminary exam?" Sakura protested. "Why can't we just start the 3rd exam?"

 _Oh great, more to do before we can pass and get out of here_. Inuyasha thought.

"Well, the thing is, there's still too many teams that have passed the exams up to this point this year. The rules state that a preliminary can be held between any exam to cut out some of the players. Like the Hokage said, important people will be watching the exam, and we won't want to be wasting their time. Only the best should be at the 3rd exam for lots of viewers to see."

"Great, so we're like the entertainment for these bums." Sonic folded his arms.

"The preliminaries will be one-on-one anything goes death match." Gekko explained. "So before we begin, if anyone would like to quit, now is the time to do it."

"Quit? Why would anyone do that?" Kiba asked aloud. The room was quiet with whispers as everyone pondered the suggestion.

"Sasuke… you should quit." Sakura was shaking. Sonic was diagonal from their team, and he and Ezi were listening in. "That mark you got from Orochimaru is dangerous."

"Be quiet, Sakura." He warned.

"I don't want to see you get hurt anymore because of it. Sasuke…" She sniffled. "If you won't quit-"

She was about to raise her hand, but Sasuke slapped her arm down.

"Don't get involved with it. I don't care about becoming chunin, I'm an avenger."

 _Avenger?_ Ezi thought.

"I need to see how far I can push myself. And the best of the best are all here, in this room…" He continued. Ezi looked around. The sand ninja Gaara, Kabuto's team, all of the rookie nine, and of course her own friends were there, ready to fight; ready to win.

"Hey, Sasuke, come on! She's just trying to make sure you're okay!" Naruto snapped.

"Naruto…" Sasuke turned to him. "You're one of the ones I want to fight the most."

Naruto was speechless. Sasuke was supposed to be this cool kid, and Naruto the dorky one… perhaps there was more to Naruto Uzumaki than met the eye.

Ezi looked over in shock at the shinobi that raised their hand to surrender.

"You got me, that's it. I give in." Kabuto said.

Naruto gasped. "What? Kabuto?"

Ezi was surprised as well, but she kept her mouth closed.

"Alright, please exit the preliminary area, then." Gekko asked.

"Got it." He sauntered casually between the people as he started for the end of the room.

"Hey, Kabuto, what gives? Why are you leaving?" Naruto demanded.

"…Sorry Naruto, ever since that attack before the exams, my left ear hasn't been working, and to be honest, I'm totally exhausted. There's no way I could go another round. But, good luck to you."

Kabuto said something to his partner in purple, then looked to Ezi, Sonic, and Shadow.

"Good luck with the preliminaries. I hope to see you all after this test, if you need anything."

Ezi was flabbergasted, but she didn't take time to understand his intentions. "Okay. See you."

"Later, Kabuto! Thanks for the help." Sonic said.

When Kabuto left, Gekko continued. "Alright. These preliminaries will be held here." He nodded towards Anko, who said something in her microphone, then a screen was uncovered behind the hand statue that covered ¼ of the wall.

"You will be chosen randomly on this screen to decide who will be fighting for this test. Like I said, it will be one-on-one. If anyone outside of the match interferes to support one of the contenders, that contender will be disqualified. As a proctor, I have some mediation over the fight. So, if I think a fight is useless, or I think one of the contenders cannot go on, I will stop the match."

"Sounds easy enough." Sango said.

Miroku wiped the sweat off of his brow. It had been almost a day, and now the mantis poison was kicking in. He felt nauseous, but not to the point of giving up, not when so much was on the line.

"So then, the first fight will be displayed here on the screen." Everyone's attention turned to the black screen that began scrambling letters together in two rows. The first match was displayed:

Sasuke Uchiha

v.

Yoroi Akado

Sasuke smirked.

Yoroi chuckled. He was the dark sunglasses man who had been on Kabuto's team.

They stood face to face in front of Gekko.

"Are there any objections to the fight?" He asked them.

"Hmph, no." Sasuke answered.

"None here." Said Yoroi.

"Then, the match will begin. Everyone not including them please clear the floor and head to the upper level."

The teams slowly walked up either staircase to the balconies. It seemed the sound, sand, and Sephiroth's team went on the left with their squad leaders, while the sun and leaf ninja went to the right side.

"Psst, Naruto," Ezi whispered as they walked up the stairs.

"Oh, hey Ezi!"

"Hey. Is Sasuke okay? He seems tired."

"I'm doing fine, thanks for asking!"

"No, not you…"

Gekko coughed some more. "Now, let the first match of the preliminaries begin."

Immediately as Sasuke's match started, they darted towards one another. Yoroi was on the ground, gripping Sasuke's shirt, and Sasuke had him pinned with his legs over Yoroi's torso.

He was draining Sasuke's chakra. When Sasuke managed to stand up, he lazily dodged Yoroi's attacks as he swiped at Sasuke.

"Sasuke, come on! Quit acting so tired, teach this guy a lesson!" Despite Naruto's disdain towards his rival comrade, he cheered on Sasuke.

Sasuke wobbly dodged Yoroi's hand swiping at him. Then, he disappeared.

"Where did he go?" Yoroi looked around, but he didn't spot Sasuke kick him in the chin below him. Yoroi went flying in the air, and Sasuke jumped up behind him.

"That is my move!" Rock Lee exclaimed.

As they seemed to be floating through the air, Sasuke looked as if he were in pain, and black spots began pouring from his neck onto the rest of his skin.

"Yikes! What's happening to him?" Sonic asked, but nobody seemed to have an answer. Sakura looked worriedly at the scene.

As he struggled and grunted, the spots quickly began to subdue back towards his neck, and he tried whacking Yoroi over his stomach with his foot, but he blocked. On the other side of him, Sasuke whacked him in the face hard with his fist, then swung his other leg over onto his body, throwing Yoroi into the hard concrete below. He hit the tile so hard, it cracked. As Sasuke landed, he collapsed too.

Gekko examined Yoroi. "Well, this guy's done."

Sasuke grunted, and began sitting back up. He plopped onto his bottom and sat up straight, panting from exhaustion.

"Since his opponent is no longer able to continue, that makes Sasuke the winner."

"Yeah! Wait a go Sasuke!" Naruto cheered. "Although, judging by the way you look, you look like the one that just lost!" He began laughing.

"He looked exhausted, but he did really well, despite that." Ezi analyzed. "Naruto, did you guys just finish the second exam?"

"Huh, yeah! We totally came in on the knick of time!"

"So, you guys must be exhausted, and he still pulled though."

"Don't act so impressed! If it had been me, I would have knocked that guy out!" Naruto clarified.

Sonic chuckled. "Your whole team is strong, Naruto. We're complimenting all of you."

Gekko coughed. Kakashi Hatake appeared beside Sasuke with a medical ninja dressed in white.

"I'll be taking Sasuke. Worry about the other guy." Kakashi told him. He helped Sasuke up and they exchanged words, then they both left the arena.

"I hope he's alright…" Sakura sounded more than distressed as she watched them leave the room.

"Wow, so this is how ninja fight? Are we gonna get to see you fight ninja, Inuyasha?" Shippo asked.

"Hmph. Whoever I face, I plan to go all the way! Bring it on."

Cloud looked across the arena towards the opposing balcony. Aritob, Kadaj, and Sephiroth were all smirking, glaring in their direction with a fiery intent.

The board began scrambling names again, and 'Zaku Abumi v Shino Aburame' appeared.

"I hope Sasuke recovers." Sonic said. "Eh, Naruto, you gonna be ready for your match?"

"OH YEAH! I'm already fired up!" Naruto exclaimed. Ezi looked behind him to see Sakura staring off worriedly into space.

"That thing he has on his neck is really bad, huh?" She was standing beside Sakura.

"Huh? W-what thing?"

"I know, Sakura. I saw it. It caused your teammate pain and you're upset. Are you okay?"

She shook her head. "Look, don't say anything to anyone, okay?"

"Okay. It did seem dangerous in the forest, but he seems to be holding his own."

Sakura looked down at the fight. "That's the guy Sasuke was fighting in the forest. I hope Shino will be okay."

The fight had already begun, and Shino had given the sound ninja Zaku an ultimatum: fight Shino, or fight the bugs that were going to attack him from behind. There were tiny black bugs creeping behind Zaku, who seemed to have a broken, bandaged arm.

He took both of his arms out to use a sound move, despite one of them being broken.

"Whoa! That must hurt!" Shippo said.

When he called his attack, though, his arms blew up and fell off.

It was shocking, to say the least. The man's arms had been ripped off by bugs.

Shino had clogged up his hands with bugs, allowing whatever sound attack he had to clog up, into his arms.

As shocked as everyone else was, Zaku was more shocked, and he collapsed, his body convulsing.

"The winner is Shino Aburame." Gekko declared.

Shino, in his white cloak, shady glasses, and really, puffy hair, sauntered back to his team.

"Um, good job, Shino." Hinata stammered.

"Just make sure you two do the same." He warned. His team leader was a tall woman with black curly hair, velvet eyes, and she had on a wired, robbed outfuit.

Miroku was sick, but he spotted the beautiful ninja right away.

"Excuse me, young woman?"

"Hm?"

"Would you kindly do me the honor of someday bearing my children-?" She kicked him before he could reach her.

"Sorry, that monk startled me." She said.

He flew back into Sango's arms.

"Well, I'm glad somebody stopped you before I could." Sango mumbled.

He wiped his bloody nose. "Ah, I feel better already in your arms, Sango."

She dropped him.

"That's Kurenai, Shino's sensei." Naruto said. "She's a total babe, but she can be scary, too! But, I think Sakura can be scarier."

"I see." Ezi chuckled.

Then, Kakashi appeared in a puff of smoke behind them.

"Yo." He said.

"What do you mean, _yo_?" Sakura snapped. "Is Sasuke okay?"

"Don't worry, he's just snoozing away in the medical ward."

"T-that's good to hear." She sighed, relieved.

The next battle was displayed on the screen:

Sora

v.

Shadow

"Huh?" Sora looked up.

It was a bit startling, to say the least. No one had anticipated they would end up fighting one another, and so soon, too.

Shadow, with his arms folded, walked casually to the arena.

"Alright, it's my turn!" Sora cheered.

"Good luck, Sora." Donald said.

"Yeah, do your best!" Goofy wailed.

"No sad faces if you lose!" Donald warned.

"Hey, good luck." Cloud said. "You can do your best here. It's a win for us if either one of you win to move on to the next round."

Sora nodded. "Yeah, you're right, but for some reason I don't want to lose to him."

"Hey, I don't know who to cheer for." Sonic admitted.

"Me neither…" Ezi watched them both enter the arena. "Good luck, guys!"

"Oh, they're both your friends? Even the spikey-haird guy who's not on your team?" Naruto asked.

"Yeah, we all get along." Ezi explained. She looked over at Sephiroth's team across the way. "Except for with those guys. They play dirty and they're certainly not nice."

"Heh, still, this outta be an interesting fight." Sonic snickered.

"Are the contestants ready?" Gekko asked them.

Sora and Shadow were glaring at one another when they nodded.

Gekko took a few steps back. "Then, let the third match begin."

Neither one of them moved for a moment.

Sora groaned. "You know, I've never had a good feeling about you since you attacked us on Captain Hook's ship."

"Hmph." Shadow took a step, and Sora's keyblade was summoned in his grasp, ready to fight.

Sakura blinked. "What's that weapon he has?"

"It's a keyblade. It works well on, uh, giant demons." Ezi scratched her head. Even though Kakashi knew, the others still did not know they were fake ninja.

Shadow jumped back and began skating in a circle around Sora, progressing his speed.

"Thunudra!" 3 bolts of lightning came down and hit the surface around Shadow, but none of them hit him.

"Chaos Spear!"

"Whoa!" Sora rolled out of the way of the light attack, and he scrambled back onto his feet. "Force!"

He casted Graviga on Shadow, and Shadow was subdued. He fell to one knee by the sheer force of the black magic attack, and Sora used it as an opportunity to jump up and strike down on him with his blade.

"Chaos control!" In a green blink, Shadow was gone.

"Wha-? Where'd he go?" Naruto and the other ninja were looking around the arena, but he could not be found.

Finally, he appeared again behind Sora and kicked him with his heavy shoe. Sora toppled forward, but slid and caught himself, facing Shadow, who was already there to punch him. He conked Sora in the face and he fly back into the ground.

"Come on, Sora!" Goofy yelled.

"Don't give up!" Donald hopped up and down.

Sora rubbed the bruise swelling on his cheek.

"Your keyblade is powerful, but I'm too fast for you, kid." Shadow sauntered towards him, giving Sora time to stand back up. Shadow was behind him, again, and kicked Sora off to the side, hitting his other cheek.

"Ugh, Shadow is so mean!" Amy stomped her foot.

"He's toying with him." Knuckles said. "Shadow could have ended this already."

"Hmph, just forfeit. You have nothing to help you reach my speed. And your defense is weak."

Sora groaned as he stood up again.

"Still won't give up?"

"Aeroga!" Sora casted the swirling wind barrier around himself. Shadow jumped into the air to kick him again, only his foot hit the wind, and he swirled away into the air. He landed on his feet and seethed at the barrier.

"Ah, Shadow's physical attacks will be useless against that Aero spell." Ezi analyzed.

Sora charged, swinging his keyblade left and right upon Shadow, but he dodged every swing until he was against the wall. He used it as support to hop into the air. Sora did the same, and he continued to swing and whack at Shadow as they landed back onto the ground.

Finally, Sora's blade was coming onto Shadow's head, but he did something outstanding, and caught the keyblade in his hand!

Sora gasped.

"I'm not getting hit by that thing a second time." Shadow said. He hadn't been hit by the keyblade once in this battle, so Sora realized he was talking about when he had knocked Shadow over the ship in Neverland.

Shadow reached out and pushed into Sora's chest, throwing him back. Sora slid, catching himself, but while he did, Shadow was morphing himself into a ball. He zoomed at Sora, and his spinning ball attack was fast enough to cut through the Aeroga shield and he rolled hard into him.

"Wow, he rolled into a ball, how'd he do that?" Naruto asked.

"He's a hedgehog, like me." Sonic winked.

Shadow stood in front of Sora as he sat up. "I told you I would get you back."

Sora gave on final groan of defeat, then fell to the ground, unconscious.

Gekko examined him. "He'll be okay, but he's knocked out. The winner is Shadow."

Shadow reappeared on the balcony, beside Inuyasha and his friends.

"Sora!" Donald and Goofy darted onto the arena and aided Sora. The helped him wobble back to the balcony.

"You didn't have to beat him up so much, Shadow!" Amy chided.

"Hmph. I did give him fair warning to quit the match."

"It's okay, Amy." Sora was rubbing his head as they walked up. "I'm glad he didn't go easy on me."

"Most impressive!" Lee commented from afar.

"His attitude reminds me of someone…" Kakashi said.

"He acts like he's all cool and lame like Sasuke!" Naruto pointed out.

"Yeah. He thinks he's too cool for school. But, he is my rival." Sonic sighed.

"Your rival? I'm your rival!" Knuckles yelled.

"Yeah, but you don't keep your cool the way Shadow does, knucklehead." Sonic snickered.

"You brat! What did you say?"

"See what I mean?" Sonic whispered to Naruto.

Gekko coughed for a while. "Okay, the next battle will be displayed here:"

Kankuro

v.

Misuri Tsurugi

When the battle began, the other team member from Kabuto's team, and Kankuro, the bully who had harassed Naruto from the sand village, dressed in black and magenta makeup lines contoured on his face. Sonic recalled how he had appeared behind Ezi and threatened them in the forest, so he preferred victory from the bully rather than the dangerous one.

Misuri had wrapped his blubbery arms and legs around Kankuro's body, including his neck.

"Forfeit the match, or I'll use my body to snap your neck!"

But, Kankuro did not wane, and—

SNAP!

Amy gasped.

"I think…. He broke his neck." Lee realized.

But, the corpse of Kankuro spun around and wrapped its bamboo arms around Misuri. Kankuro's face peeled off, and it was revealed that a croaking, creaking body was the real thing being wrapped around the confused shinobi.

From the heavy white thing he always carried, the real Kankuro appeared. Blue strings of light and energy were at his fingertips, as he controlled the fake former self to crush Misumi's perplexing body.

"He's a puppet master," Kakashi explained, "he was in the cloth the whole time controlling the puppet."

"A puppet master?" Sonic echoed. "You shinobi are a bit more complex than I thought."

Misumi fell after Kankuro of the sand had crushed him.

"Since his opponent is no longer able to continue, the winner is Kaknuro."

"Is it bad I was sort of hoping for the other guy to win?" Kagome whispered to Knuckles.

"Well, the other guy attacked Sonic's team, remember? But still… if they're responsible for that massacre Inuyasha saw, they can't be good."

Sakura returned from the bathroom, her and Ino both.

"I can't wait until its my turn!" Naruto declared. "Come on! I can beat any of them any day!"

Sakura chuckled.

"Now is not the time to be laughing." Kakashi said to her. He pointed up to the plaque behind the hand sign statue.

Sakura Haruno

v.

Ino Yamanaka

… Sakura looked to her opponent. Her best friend, her worst rival.

Ino gawked back. As the blonde kunoichi passed by, Kagome stammered.

"Hey, good luck with everything." She nodded to her.

The flower girl nodded, and continued on.

"Alright, go, Ino!" Choji and Shikamaru watched with their sensei as Ino reached the arena, with Sakura also there.

"I want the human version of me to win." Amy commented.

"Human version of-?" Kagome looked at the kunoichi below and gasped. " _Ohhhhh."_

As the match began, the girls threw kunais at one another and charged. Their hands interlocked and they jumped back, then they went for each other again, swiping and punching and kicking one another in a simple, hand-to-hand combat in close contact.

"Come on, Sakura!" Naruto cheered.

"Sakura's her name?" Amy asked. "Hey, Naruto, right?"

"Yeah-" he turned to Amy. "No way! You're like a animal version of Sakura!"

She giggled. "She's cute! I hope she wins!"

"What is this nonsense we're witnessing?" Neji, the other guy on Rock Lee's team, was commentating. Sango was listening in on the other side of Naruto. "Is this the best that kunoichi can do?"

An instinctual growl grew from her closed mouth. In her own training and prowess as a skilled slayer, she took pride in seeing other women who devoted their lives to a certain skill succeed. She almost wanted to defend them, these small girls she knew nothing about.

"It's not because they're girls, Neji," Ten-Ten, the girl on Lee's team seemed to take on the voice Sango did not possess in this foreign world. "It's just that those two are using kid-gloves. They are going easy on each other because of their history."

As the fight continued, Ino managed to punch Sakura in the side, and as she lunged forward in response, was about to punch her from the other side right into her face.

She didn't.

Ino's intense twist and action to punch her enemy right in the head, slouched as she stood up and her fist became a slap that contacted Sakura's features.

Some of the genin seemed speechless.

"Why did she stop? SHE HAD HER!" Choji, the large one, demanded.

Sakura spoke first. "Listen to me, Ino. I'm not going to fight over Sasuke with you anymore."

"What did you say?" Ino growled.

"I'm not the needy girl I used to be; I've come to far for that—besides, you're not even his type: Ino, PIG!"

"Sakura Haruno; how dare you! Did you forget who you're talking to? You'd better think twice before you open that hole in your mouth billboard brow!"

"That was low for Sakura, right, Kakashi? I've never seen Ino so mad." Naruto speculated.

"She just doesn't want Ino going easy on her."

"What's going on? They're both just standing there…" Ezi was almost frustrated that they were both holding back, somehow.

"It's just because they have history." Sango said. "Can't you tell?"

Suddenly, Sakura took her headband off of the top of her head, and began coiling it around her forehead, where it was supposed to be. Ino did the same, taking the band from her waist and wrapping it on her forehead.

"I don't get it! How are they getting all tense just by staring at each other?" Naruto yelled.

Sakura and Ino charged again, but this time, their fists clashed, and neither of them faltered.

"Huh. 'Guess they mean business now." Inuyasha mumbled. "Well, the sooner they finish their cat fight, the sooner I can get to my match and we can be done."

"SIT!"

Inuyasha was pulled into the ground by the enchanted beads on his neck.

"Don't be so rude, stupid!" Kagome chided.

Sakura conjured three shadow clones of herself using hand signs, and they all sped at a rather fast speed towards Ino. The middle Sakura remained and she punched Ino enough to cause her to flail and roll into the ground a ways away.

"You play with fire: you're gonna get burned!" Sakura yelled. "I'm not some crybaby anymore, so give it your best shot, Ino!"

"You don't have to tell me twice." Ino wiped the blood from her lips and stood up.

"You're doing awesome Sakura, believe it!" Naruto yelled.

"I've never seen work this well before." Kakashi commented.

"Wait! You're not saying she's better than me, are you?"

"No, you're the greatest." Kakashi teased.

Sonic chuckled. Naruto mumbled something in response to his sensei's taunt.

"Ugh, I have a headache now." Sora leaned against the rail with Donald and Goofy beside Rock Lee's team.

"This battle sure has gone on a while." Goofy said, gripping his injured arm over the rail.

"Sakura is good, but her opponent is equally as good." With a fist by his chin, Lee watched the match intently. "This match could last a while."

"Aw, phooey." Donald grumbled.

And, it did last for several minutes of throwing kunai's and punching and kicking and more throwing. Despite their heavy breathing, though, they didn't seem to be slowing down.

"How are you evenly matched with me?" Ino finally demanded after they both managed to punch each other at the same time in the face.

"I guess no one could match your obsession with your looks and your hair; I've been training too much to care about those things!" Sakura said.

"I'll show you!"

"What an idiot." Shikamaru, the boy on her team said. "She's falling for Sakura's tricks."

At that moment, Ino used her kunai and grabbed her braid, then sliced through her blonde hair like a stack of straw.

"HERE, I DON'T NEED THIS!" She threw the strands of hair at Sakura.

"She… she's totally lost it!" Shikamaru said, baffled.

"Alright! I've had about enough!" Ino threw her arms up, making a circle with her thumbs, index and middle fingers touching at the tips.

"The mind transfer jutsu symbol…" Sakura said. She began to explain the ability, that the clan known as the Yamanaka possessed. It was a jutsu that could allow the caster to enter the spirit of another's body; the flaws of the technique, however, were that it was a slow technique, so the enemy would have not be aware they were using the attack in order for it to work, or the caster's mind would travel in the air for a while, leaving the body exposed.

"It sounds risky." Sango said. "She shouldn't be using this technique."

"Maybe she's just tired… like the rest of us are…" Miroku stepped back and sat against the wall. He seemed to still be sweating, a trait that everyone had lacked upon simply standing in the cool arena.

"I won't know unless I try!" Ino snapped.

"If you miss me, you lose; you do know that, right?" Sakura lowered her stance and began to run at her.

"Ninja art: Mind transfer justsu!" Ino yelled. Sakura stopped running, and Ino's body slowly sunk onto her knees, the jutsu in effect.

"Did that justsu work?" Ezi asked aloud.

"A jutsu that can transfer your mind into another's?" Shadow said to himself. "What else can these shinobi do?"

"What an unfortunate choice… Ino." Sakura said.

"She lost, that's it. Sakura can beat her up no and the match is over." Shikamaru decided.

The blonde hairs on the floor turned blue, and the hairs tied to Sakura's feet. She couldn't move suddenly.

"I caught you…" Ino looked up. "…I finally caught you, Sakura!"

"I don't get it? How come Ino is awake if the jutsu didn't work?" Lee thought aloud.

"I pretended to use the jutsu before, to get you off your guard! Now you're stuck in this special rope I made from my chakra that's tied to my hair. You're stuck now, and there's no way I'll miss with my jutsu this time!"

Sakura tried struggling, but no avail. Ino did the symbol again, this time tying her fingers together and creating the circle, and tried the jutsu once more.

"What an unfortunate choice… Sakura." Sakura said this, so it was easily presumed that Ino had entered her spirit.

"What is she saying? She's acting strange." Naruto said.

"Keep up, kiddo! Sakura got caught by Ino's trap!" Sonic explained.

"That means… Ino has entered Sakura's mind? She lost?" Lee said sadly.

Sakura raised her hand. "I, Sakura Haruno, would like to forf-"

"Sakura, DON'T!" Naruto yelled. "You've come too far to lose now!"

"Ugh, he's so loud…" Sakura growled. Suddenly, she griped the sides of her head, as if she were in pain.

"What's going on?" Shikamaru asked.

"It looks like… Sakura is fighting Ino inside of her spirit." Kakashi analyzed.

"Yeah! She has spirit, like I do!" Amy cheered.

Ino's body sprang up again, and it was apparent both kunoichi were back in their respected bodies.

"There's a lot of reasons that Sakura could have freed herself from Ino's jutsu, but it wasn't an easy task. She's done well." Kakashi said.

The two girls were drained; despite this, they managed to stand tall and charge at one another again. A vicious punch from both ends, a split in each other's faces, blood, flailing headbands and they both flew back just as before; this time, neither of them arose again.

"Since neither combatant is able to continue, this is a double knockout round: neither have passed the preliminaries and will not continue to the third exam."

"Wow… that stinks. After all that they can't continue?" Knuckles whispered.

"They did their best, I guess." Shippo answered.

"Hmph, finally." Inuyasha grumbled. Kagome settled with slapping his shoulder this time.

Kakashi picked up Sakura, and Asuma lifted Ino, and they left to clear the arena. Temari v. Ten-Ten became the next match that appeared: The girl from the sand village with her four braids, and Ten-Ten from Lee's team with the buns.

"Go Ten-Ten!" Lee declared.

"Youth at full power!" Guy, Rock Lee's sensei, added onto the cheering. He was as peculiar as Rock Lee with his defined jawline and bowl haircut.

"Someone from the sand village… this could be interesting." Neji said.

"There's that girl who was picking on Naruto and those kids with the other sand guy." Ezi said.

"Yeah… I'm rooting for the girl on Lee's team. He's seems really spirited." Sonic decided.

Inuyasha growled again. "There's still so many people! When's it gonna be my turn?"

"Be patient! This gives us more time to rest to for whoever you have to face, you know." Sora answered. "That's why I lost to Shadow, after all."

"Uh-huh, sure."

As the match began, Ten-Ten stepped clear away from Temari, and hopped up high in the air and threw her small ninja stars at her. In a flash, the weapons landed at Temari's feet.

"No way! Ten-Ten never misses!" Lee yelled.

"It must be something that girl is doing." Guy concluded.

"It's that fan." Shadow stated.

"Huh?" Sonic's ears twitched.

"The giant thing on her fan. Hmph, you didn't see it?"

The match continued: Ten-Ten continued to throw heavier and heavier weapons that never touched Temari, and Temari did not move much to blow the weapons from hitting her. Ten-Ten an impressive array of weaponry from her twin dragons scroll summoning, and the crowd watched as the weapons went flying into Temari's direction. Temari's movement was slower this time, and everyone could see the three purple spots as her fan was fully opened behind her. The wind not only casted the attack away, but it forced Ten-Ten to fall from her aerial space and be tossed by the wind back into the ground.

"Wow, she blocked all of those weapons using a giant fan?" Kagome analyzed. "It's sort of like your boomerang, Sango."

"Yes. Weapons that are normally seen as regular trinkets that can be used as massive weaponry tend to be effective." Sango added.

"Now, it's my turn." Temari griped the end of her fan. "Ninja style: Wind Scythe Jutsu!"

The wind was visible now; gusts of it like blades hurtling Ten-Ten into the air; it was so loud they could not hear Ten-Ten screaming, which she was clearly doing as the winds began to cut through her in tiny, long cuts.

"She's controlling the wind with her chakra." Neji said. "She fought a good fight, and its over for Ten-Ten."

"You think he'd support his teammate a little more." Kagome whispered to Sango.

"Yeah, he's been bugging me since we got here."

Ten-Ten went flying, then she dropped straight down when the wind dispersed, and she landed subsided on Temari's closed fan. Blood curdled from her mouth, and she was clearly unconscious.

"Whoa, that girl's really ruthless." Naruto sounded stunned. "She's scary."

"Poor girl, she kinda got whooped." Amy said.

"Huh, pretty pathetic; that was hardly a match." Temari said.

Gekko took a step over the fallen weapons. "Since Ten-Ten is no longer able to battle, the winner is Temari."

Temari took it as her cue. She threw Ten-Ten across the weapons, and Lee appeared in enough time before his comrade could tumble into them, and he caught her in a horizontal grip.

"This is no way to treat an opponent!" He yelled at the smug sand shinobi. Lee tried to kick her, but she blocked to the side with her fan, calling him pathetic. Guy sensei appeared behind him and warned him to stop.

"Temari, get up here." Gaara, the red head from the sand with the gourd on his back was ordering her in his gruff voice. "You won the match already, don't waste your time with that ridiculous boy and his chaperone."

"What'd you say?" Lee snarled.

"That's enough." Guy intervened. "Just so you sand ninja know: Lee's a strong kid, and he still hasn't fought yet." He took Ten-Ten and Temari left with pride back to the left side of the balcony.

"Don't look so startled, Naruto: keep on your toes." Sakura emerged from the hallway.

"Hey, you recovered quickly!" Naruto said.

As the two conversed, another match appeared on the screen for all to see:

Inuyasha

V

Kadaj

The group was slightly stunned.

"Heh, finally." Inuyasha unfolded his arms and hopped down to the arena.

"Be careful, Inuyasha. Good luck!" Kagome exclaimed.

"What a strange mix: Inuyasha and Kadaj?" Knuckles scratched his head.

"Who is that guy, anyway?" Miroku asked, sort of aiming his curiosity at Cloud.

"He's like a shell of Sephiroth: a body built from the lifestream after Sephiroth got his hands on it awhile back. I defeated him."

"Why is he here, then?"

"I'm not sure… it's possible he somehow came back from the lifestream."

"I didn't get all of that…" Miroku admitted, "….But I'm sure Inuyasha will do fine."

"Are you alright?" Cloud asked the monk without looking in his direction. "You seem sick."

"Uh, yeah, I'm fine."

Kadaj and Inuyasha reached the center of the floor.

"Quit smirking like that, it pisses me off!" Inuyasha warned. Kadaj chuckled, like a little child.

"You'll be fun to practice on."

"Uh," Gekko coughed, "do either of you have any objections to this fight?"

Still smiling, Kadaj shook his head.

"No way, I've been itching to take something down, so it might as well be you." Inuyasha put his hand on the tip of Tetsaiga's sheath.

"Your friends got a bit of spirit." Kakashi commented. Sonic had noticed he had slinked closer to their group throughout the match; it was no doubt his way to see if he had made the right choice and could trust them.

"He's obnoxious, but he does what he needs to protect his friends." Sonic shrugged.

"Yeah, you just have to get passed the asshole attitude of his to like him." Ezi said.

"Go Inuyasha! You can do it!" Shippo cheered.

"Ah, another opportunity to see how well these sun ninja do." The Hokage noted.

"It seemed like the other ones had speed and lightning abilities; now we can see what these ones can do." Anko added.

Inuyasha yanked out his massive Tetsaiga as the match began. Kadaj whipped out his two-blade sword with a few flips, keeping it low, upward, and to his side.

"Bring it on."

.

.

.

.

.TO BE CONTINUED


	7. Scroll 7: Beasts of Red, Blue and Silver

Scroll 7: Beasts of Red, Blue and Silver

Inuyasha and Kadaj charged. Kadaj flipped above Inuyasha's head and twirled around to his back as Inuyasha attempted to swipe at him. Kadaj swung in several quick strokes, and Inuyasha could barely block with his giant fang. Kadaj sliced into the side of Inuyasha, and he jumped back.

"He cut him!" Sora exclaimed. "Is the cut deep?"

"I think he's okay." Miroku held his stomach. He leaned in closer to Sora to whisper. "Remember: Inuyasha is a half demon. Regular wounds won't harm him the way they do humans."

"Ohhhh, right!"

"Shh!"

Inuyasha griped the wound to the side of his stomach. Blood laced down his long nails and dripped onto the concrete.

 _That wound is deep. He may not last long_. Gekko thought.

Kadaj chuckled.

"Damn smug bastard." Inuyasha growled. "Blades of Blood!" The swung his arm out from his stomach, and the blood flowed like several harsh scythes through the air. The four or five blades cut passed Kadaj, who dodged them all by sliding and turning casually. When the attack was done, he ran for Inuyasha again, who once more could only block the oncoming slashes.

"Whoa! Did he just use his own blood as a weapon?" Sakura asked.

"Yep." Sonic answered. "He's a bit bad tempered, but he's resourceful as well.

"Blood as an attack…" Kakashi pondered, "you guys really are out of this world."

Sonic did a fake laugh. "How observant of you."

Ezi stood beside Cloud. "Do you think Inuyasha will be alright? He can barely block, let alone attack."

"Kadaj is a skilled swordsman, just like Sephiroth." He explained. "Still, he seems slower than when I we had battled."

"Enough of this fancy swinging!" Inuyasha swung his giant sword, and Kadaj had to jump back, lunging in large steps away every time Inuyasha swung.

He had managed to throw his Tetsaiga up before the materia magic from Kadaj's arm flew out in an attempt to leave the defense, and one of the lights landed beside Inuyasha and blew up into the ground, throwing him into the air. He gained control of himself and landed back onto the ground, and Kadaj was waiting for him. A green material of powder shot from his arm and into Inuyasha's chest, sliding him back, but it did not inflinct any damage.

"Was that..?" Cloud scanned the scene.

"What is it?"

"Kadaj is packed with materia… I hope that's not what I thought it was—but, I haven't seen that in a while."

"Ugh, what was that?" Inuyasha rubbed his chest, but he felt nothing. Then, Kadaj came down on him with his sword again, and he was blocking and moving from him once more.

 _Damn! This guy's too fast for me…_ Inuyasha realized.

"If only Inuyasha could use his wind scar!" Shippo cried. "That would teach this guy a lesson!"

"Yeah… but that would knock this whole place down." Kagome said, biting her lip.

Several times, Inuyasha had been sliced in the arms, legs, torso and face. Blood was coming out of him somewhere from all the hits Kadaj had managed to slice into him. Finally, Kadaj had an opening, and he sliced diagonally up and through Inuyasha's chest; he roared out in pain.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome cried.

The dog demon fell to his knees. _Damn it! I've lost a lot of blood…_

"Give up. You're not even worth my time!" Kadaj looked up at Cloud. "Heh, even your friends know it. You're dealing with a higher being here."

"Quit your high and mighty talk!" Inuyasha panted. He dug the tip of his sword into the ground and used it as a support to stand up, wobbling.

"Pathetic…" He looked up again. "Really, Cloud. You betrayed your mother to be allies with these weaklings?"

"Mother? Is he talking about Jenova?" Knuckles realized. "Man this guy is a nut case!"

"Really: once you see how easy it is to wipe each of your precious friends out-" Kadaj was behind Inuyasha in a flash, and had stabbed him through the stomach, both of his blades protruding out from him. "—You'll be begging to join mother again!"

Sakura gasped.

 _He's a goner… no medical ninja will be able to heal that in enough time._ Kakashi thought.

The blood curdled from Inuyasha's mouth, and he spit it on the floor as he slouched forward in agony; Kadaj ripped his two blades from his body, and Inuyasha fell onto his face.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome darted to the stairs, and there was moment of disbelief at how easily he had fallen.

Gekko coughed, allowing himself to recover from the unsightly gore before him. He hesitated, like he had with Kankuro's match, deciding if there was something else up Inuyasha's sleeve, he would have done it by now.

"Since he is no longer able to battle—"

" **KAGOME, STAY BACK!"** Inuyasha growled in a horrible, scratchy voice.

She caught herself from flying down anymore steps, and she and everyone else watched in shock as Inuyasha began to lift himself up.

Shikamaru gasped. "What the hell is going on? He practically got sliced in two just now; he shouldn't be able to get up, right?"

"I guess he lost; but, you see? That sort of wound is not deadly to him." Miroku sounded relieved.

"No… something's wrong." Sango concluded.

Inuyasha didn't seem to be struggling. He stood up slowly as if he were just standing up from a bed, with his tired head cast down.

"Still want more? Well, if you insist…" Kadaj prepared another slash, leaping just high enough so he so he could bring his sword down onto him. Inuyasha barely moved when he grabbed the blade with his bare, left hand—he grabbed the sword tightly, and Kadaj couldn't pull it away. He was startled when Inuyasha turned his head to the side, and he could see the bright blue glare encircled by crimson eyes.

Everyone gasped.

"I knew it!" Sango said sternly. "He turned into his full demon form!" In her distress, she did not bother filtering her words in front of any wandering ears that did not understand the condition at hand—Naruto was a few people away from her on the rail, but he did hear her, and is expression became filled with terror.

"Damn; he's at his limit, and he can't use the Tetsaiga's full power here, so he transformed." Miroku deduced. "What should we do?"

"We can't stop the match, right? He'll lose."

"L-let go!" Kadaj demanded. Inuyasha turned around to fully face him, still holding the sword.

" **What's wrong? I thought you said I'd be easy to wipe out!"** Inuyasha chuckled through his sharp teeth.

"This isn't good." Knuckles clenched his fists tightly.

"Inuyasha…" Kagome was frozen. If she interfered, he would be disqualified. If she didn't, he might try to kill everyone.

Kadaj was forced to release his weapon when he jumped back, as Inuyasha tried clawing him. Kadaj did not anticipate the jump in speed by Inuyasha, he was flailing his much longer nails at him, growling like a beast.

"Hey, is it alright if I ask what happened to your friend there?" Kakashi asked Sonic casually.

Sonic sighed. "He went full demon when Kadaj injured him. It rarely happens, but when it does its not pretty."

"Full demon? Hmm…" Kakashi rubbed his chin. "But, don't you guys slay demons?"

"Sure, the ones that cause trouble and are just plain bad. Not all monsters are bad, after all- But Inuyasha is actually a nice guy, like I said before. This isn't necessarily something he is great at controlling though once it gets to this point."

Inuyasha seemed to be getting faster at every move, as if he were able to gain endurance from studying Kadaj's movement.

Finally, he slashed through Kadaj's leg, much to the mischievous fiend's surprise, and he toppled onto the ground, rolling away quickly before Inuyasha could swipe at him again. He stood up quickly and threw his arm out.

"Manipulate!"

A green cloud of smoke flushed out from Inuyasha, and he froze.

" **Can't… move…"**

"What happened? Move, Inuyasha!" Shippo proclaimed.

"It's the Materia he shot at him earlier." Cloud said. "Kadaj can control creepers and summon them from the lifestream using a mixture of Materia from his hand. He used the manipulate materia on Inuyasha, and is trying to control him."

"No!" Ezi cried. "That means he'll control his body?"

"Yes."

Kadaj chuckled and limped towards Inuyasha as the full-fledged demon fell to his knees.

"Looks like I've got you. I'll make you forfeit, then maybe I'll have you go after your pathetic friends one by-"

Kadaj's chest was ripped open. Inuyasha flew up and clawed on hand through him like a child wisps through bubbles.

The air was still for those few seconds that seemed to last quite a while, until Kadaj's body slammed into the floor.

Kadaj must have died, but he tried to sit up, his mangled body covered in red.

"He…" Everyone was speechless.

Gekko was stammering. He didn't know what to do at first. It would be the first death that emerged from the preliminaries, after all.

Inuyasha growled and began swinging his head about; a sort of anguished, victory cry spewed from him.

"Inuyasha!" Kagome had already entered the arena and had hugged him from behind.

Sakura gasped. The scene felt familiar to her, and it reminded her that Sasuke Uchiha, her dear teammate, had been cursed in the forest of death.

"Please… control yourself! I know you want to go home, but you can't use your power like this just so you can win!"

Inuyasha tried struggling, snarling at her.

"Please! Don't do this! You have to be strong, Inuyasha… I'm begging you! I don't want to see you like this!"

Cloud hopped down from the rail and jumped towards them. Inuyasha turned around, and he raised his claw at her, but Cloud shoved something in his mouth, and he unwillingly swallowed. In an instant, Inuyasha collapsed, unconscious.

"Wh-what just happened?" Sora said first. Inuyasha was knocked out, and Kadaj was no longer moving.

After a few seconds, Gekko took the initiative to cough, then speak:

"Since Kadaj has been defeated, and there was interference on Inuyasha's part, it is another double knock out: neither will continue to the next round."

"What? Interference? Kadaj was already down when Kagome got there!" Knuckles retorted.

"Allow me to explain: I had every intention of stopping the match when he went crazy; however I allowed the match to continue. He had only attacked Kadaj, and while it was a fatal blow, it is necessary to give some time before I could call him the victor." He eyed Cloud and Kagome. "They interfered before I could declare anyone as the winner, and now he is unable to continue fighting as well. With both participants unable to continue, the match was forfeited. That's that."

"But-!"

"Knuckles, stop." Kagome snapped. She wiped the water from her cheeks. "It's fine."

"I gave him an anti-Esuna; it's a strong magic that put him to sleep." Cloud explained. "Sorry."

"No! T-thank you…" Kagome looked down at Inuyasha. The purple bars were gone from his face, his nails were shorter, and he looked peaceful.

"Could you..?"

Cloud yanked the unconscious demon over his shoulder as the medical ninja in white raced over to Kadaj. Before they could examine his body, though, it dispersed into tiny green lights and floated into the air.

Everyone watched in peculiar awe as the lights seeped high into the air, and were gone.

"He… He just disappeared!" Naruto gasped. "Whoa, totally weird."

Cloud sighed. "Inuyasha did kill him. His body returned to the lifestream. But… I wonder if it will find our planet so far away from it."

"If you're worried about his actions… you can put your friend in the room in the back of the hall, instead of take him all the way to the infirmary." Kakashi said.

"T-thank you." Ezi stammered. She could tell by the look of shock on Kagome's face what was going through her head. She watched as Kagome quietly followed Cloud to the room.

"We should go make sure he's okay—"

"No, what if our match comes up soon?" Miroku clarified. "He'll be okay. Besides… I think Kagome should be the only one there when he wakes up. They may need to talk."

Shikamaru Nara v Kin Tsuchi appeared on the board next, and the lazy genin from the leaf, and the longhaired female from the sound, headed for the arena.

"Shikamaru, don't lose!" Ino yapped. Naruto and Sakura took the initiative to stand beside her and Choji to watch the match.

The battle began, and Shikamaru made a hand sign by holding his index and middle finger with his other hand.

"Ninja art: Shadow Possession Jutsu!"

"A one trick pony, huh?" Kin mocked. "If you're going to use the same old move every time this match will be easy."

He used his attack anyway: the shadow under him danced across the tile, flying towards Kin. She moved out of the way and threw senbon needles with bells attached to the end, and he rolled away quickly, halting his jutsu.

Sonic whistled. "A shadow possession technique? Too bad he wasn't fast enough."

"What did she mean by one trick pony? Have they fought before?" Ezi asked.

"Sort of." Sakura answered. "Ino's team helped us out a little when they attacked our squad."

"And don't you forget that we did!" Ino snapped.

"Huh? We were attacked by them?" Naruto scratched his head.

"You idiot! You were knocked out, remember?" Sakura chided.

"Well, I'm glad you guys made it out, anyway." Ezi said.

As the fight continued, Kin managed to trick Shikamaru and pierce into his arm with two senbons with bells.

"Shikamaru!" cried Ino. He yanked them out immediately, but grew stiff.

Kin cackled. "You feel for my trap! My bells are special, and they send a sound to your ear drum that causes you to hallucinate once they've rang into your body!" She threw three more at him, and he merely dodged by ducking his head in and covering his body with his arms, which the needles easily pushed into.

"Next I'll throw five, then seven, until you become a hedgehog!"

"Hey! I didn't like that joke." Sonic admitted.

"Go ahead and use your shadow justsu! You won't be able to figure out which one is the real me in enough time!"

"What does she mean by that?" Sonic asked.

"It must be the hallucinations he is having." Lee answered.

"T-that's no good."

As she gave a monologue, Shikamaru had used his jutsu, and somehow managed to snatch the real Kin in his jutsu.

"How?" She yelled. "I made sure all of the hallucinations had shadows too!"

"Maybe so," Shikamaru said, proudly, "but the bells you threw before with the string have shadows, and you didn't copy those."

"Hmph, this kid is smart." Shadow said to himself.

Now Kin was under his control, and he forced her to move her arm into her pouch as he did the same, both pulling out a ninja star.

"You're crazy! If you throw, I'll be throwing it too; you'd be attacking yourself!"

He threw it anyway, and she was forced to do the same with her own; Shikamaru took the effort to dodge by diving backwards quickly, and Kin had to do the same. He swung his body all the way down with agile care, but Kin had been too close to the wall behind her, so her heads slammed into it when she dodged the same way. She passed out and slid onto the floor.

"And that's what I call using your head." Shikamaru snickered. He flipped backwards so he was standing normal again, slouched. "A real ninja needs to be aware of their surroundings, too. She didn't see the wall right behind her. What a drag."

"The winner by knockout is Shikamru." Gekko declared.

Ino and Choji cheered as he sauntered lazily out of the arena.

"Wow, what a smart kid! Using his surroundings like that." Ezi stated.

"Eh, it was okay." Naruto folded his arms.

"Admit it: you thought it was cool!" Sonic said.

"I, I did not!"

"I hope it is my turn next!" Lee declared. "Please be my turn, please, please, please!"

"Man, when's it gonna be my turn already?" Naruto pouted.

Someone collapsed beside them, and everyone looked to see the monk in purple on the ground.

"Miroku!" Sango cried, racing to his side, "What's wrong?"

"He looks really sick!" Knuckles analyzed. Hearing this, Sango pulled up his sleeve to see his entire arm was purple.

"What..?"

"Hey, did he get poisoned?" Sora asked.

She gasped. "That's right! The giant bug… it must have injured him when he used his wind tunnel!"

"What? Why didn't he say anything before?"

"He… must have wanted to fight in his match first. If we left to treat it, he would have automatically lost…" Sango placed two fingers on his neck. "He's still breathing!"

"L-let's get him to our, uh, base!" Tails said carefully. "I have tons one medicine that can treat his wound."

"His pulse is low, we don't have much time, hurry!" Sango voice sounded scratched.

"Who can take him? If any of us go… we could miss our match." Knuckles enlightened.

"I'll go." Shadow said. "I can use chaos control. But, I can't use it all the way to the base, and I can't carry him on my own."

"Kirara, let's go!" Sango didn't hesitate. Her two-tailed cat transformed into a giant beast, and she helped shadow get Miroku onto Kirara's back.

"Sango, if you go!"

"I have to go!" Sango said. "I'm not leaving him like this!"

"I'll go too." Tails said. "I have to get you guys into the base." Tails flew down the hall, and Sango, Miroku and Shadow atop Kirara took off.

"Oh, I hope he'll be okay…" Sakura said quietly.

"Ah, hey is that guy gonna be okay?" Naruto asked.

Sonic looked out onto the screen. "Don't worry about that, Naruto: focus on what you have to do now."

"Huh?" He looked to the board.

Kiba Inuzuka

V

Naruto Uzumaki

"…Oh! ALRIGHT! FINALLY ITS MY TURN!" Naruto, and Kiba, the boy with the dog and wearing a heavy purple jacket, entered the arena.

"Sonic, without Sango and Miroku here…"

"Yeah, I know. That means me, you, Cloud and Knuckles could be the only ones with a chance to make it now to the next round."

"Eh, I hope Inuyasha and Miroku will be alright."

As the match began, Naruto and Kiba were bickering with one another. Naruto complained about the little white dog being a cheat, but Gekko said it was considered a weapon, especially for someone from the Inuzuka clan.

Kiba was speculating Naruto for the small dweeb he was. He recalled that the only thing he and the obnoxious Naruto had in common was that they both wanted to be Hokage. However, Naruto was always making a fool of himself at their ninja academy, and he couldn't even do a decent clone jutsu.

"Akamaru," Kiba said to the dog, "stay out of this." He made a hand sign. "Ninja art: man beast mimicry!" He went down on all fours, looking as beastly as Inuyasha had, and he swung himself at Naruto, cramming his elbow into his stomach. Naruto went toppling far and fell out onto the floor.

"Ah!" Sakura cried.

"That was fast." Choji said. "Man, Kiba was lucky getting to fight him."

"Awe, man…" Sonic's ears went down.

"No way… Naruto?" Ezi looked down at him, concerned, stunned, but then he began to rise again.

"I was wrong about him…" Sakura said thoughtfully. "…He may be an idiot, but that's what makes him Naruto: he never gives up!"

"Don't…ever… underestimate me!"

"Yeah, Naruto! Show 'em what you can do!"

"You're a mess; all tough talk!" Kiba snarled.

"I just wanted to see what you can do: you hit an old lady!"

"You'll regret that…" Kiba grumbled. "Akamaru, let's go!"

"Phew! He got me there for a second." Sonic commented.

Kiba threw smoke grenades at him next, and he used it to hit Naruto left and right in the smoke; Naruto jumped out, and Akamaru chomped at his arm, throwing him down and back into the smoke.

"Ha! He fell for it." Kiba said proudly. He waited for the dust to clear, and Akamaru was sitting proudly with an unconscious Naruto on his side.

"Man, beat by the puppy…" Knuckles said, disappointingly. Akamaru ran to Kiba, and jumped up and chomped on his arm now, too. "What the-? Did the dog betray his master?"

A puff of white smoke embodied Akamaru, and it was revealed that Naruto had used a transformation jutsu on himself, and used a clone to hold Akamaru by the arms in the air. Everyone was quite impressed; even the sand and other sun ninja were speculating with interest.

"Heh, the kids more interesting than I thought." Kankuro, the puppet master, said to his brother and sister.

"He's certainly has good timing on his jutsu." Temari added.

Aritob and Sephiroth had remained quite for the duration of the preliminaries. They certainly had nothing in common to speak of, and with Kadaj defeated so easily, they were preparing for their own fights mentally.

"These jutsu are quite interesting… perhaps I'll have to learn a few myself." Aritob spoke.

"Do it quickly, before my plan comes to fruition." Sephiroth bothered to look at Cloud on the other side, who had been tense the whole time, because of their connection. He could practically _feel_ Cloud's desperation to escape him or fight him; either way, it boiled amusement behind his cold, green eyes.

Akamaru had turned red, and Naruto was forced to let the dog go.

"Hey, what did you feed him?"

"A food pill; but you don't need to worry about that." Kiba went on all fours again, and Akamaru hopped onto his back. "Ninja art: Beast Mimicry: Man Beast Clone!" In a puff of smoke, Kiba's jutsu turned Akamaru into a clone of himself, and they both charged for him.

"He's so fast; not as fast as me, of course." Sonic noted. Naruto swiped and moved side to side to avoid Kiba and his clone's oncoming attacks as they circled him like wild animals.

"That food pill he took doubles his stamina in agility." Asuma, Ino's sesnei, said. "Things aren't looking good for Naruto."

Kiba used the smoke bombs again, and he and Akamaru used another jutsu that caused their bodies to twist fast enough and become like berserk tornados, bouncing off the surface and possibly hitting Naruto.

"I-I can't see if they're hitting him or not with the smoke bombs covering everything!" Sakura said worriedly. As the dust cleared, however, three Kiba's stood in the middle of the floor.

"What the-?" Knuckles exclaimed.

Sonic laughed. "Man, this kid is great! He just keeps pulling the tricks!"

Unfortunately, Kiba's senses were similar to a dog's, and he could smell which one was the fake Naruto; he punched him down, but the clone transformed into Akamaru. Shocked at how he could have possibly missed such a mistake, he turned around and punched the other clone, only for it to be knocked out and turned into the real dog. The first dog stood up and ran to Kiba while his back was turned, transforming into Naruto and kicking the baffled Kiba right in the jaw. Kiba flew back, but he did not fall; Akamaru however had officially remained dormant after his own owner had knocked him out.

"What a go Naruto!" Sakura cheered.

"Classic. This is too good." Sonic said. "He'll be fine."

"The match hasn't ended yet; how can you say that?" Ezi demanded.

"I believe in him. He'll be okay." He said it so nonchalantly, it was difficult for Ezi to believe him.

After a few cuts and knocks- even though he continued to stand up from every hit- it was official despite his earlier victories that he was too slow against Kiba. For his last trick, Kiba planned to use a final attack behind him while Naruto tried to gain chakra.

In a fit of stress and anxiety he had been holding in, Naruto farted. It was loud enough for all to hear, and Kiba to smell with his sensitive nose, distracting the beast-like shinobi in a fit of agony as he tried to conceal his nose.

"Whatever works, Naruto: you got him right where you want him!" Sakura cheered.

"Right! And now its time for my secret technique!" Naruto finally managed to take the time to summon four shadow clones, and they surrounded Kiba. One of his clones punched Kiba in the face, and he used the clone as support for himself to jump up high into the air. The other three clones took a turn punching Kiba's body up into the air, where the real Naruto was.

"UZUMAKI BARAGE!" Naruto flipped down upon him, and he kicked Kiba right in the head so hard, Kiba 's entire body smacked back into the ground—blood spat from his mouth before he was knocked out.

Everyone was shocked for a moment; the technique felt similar, yet it was still an impressive display of jutsu and physical attacks being used at once. No one said a word as Gekko examined Kiba.

"The winner is: Naruto Uzumaki."

"yyyyyyyyYEAHHHH!" Naruto looked beat, and exhausted, but he managed to jump with joy.

The medical team had to come and prep Kiba to be moved with a likely concussion, so everyone waited for the arena to be cleared.

Despite this, the board began to select the next random fight:

Sango

V

Miroku

"…Ah, no way!" Ezi gasped.

"Huh? Where the hell are those two?" Everyone turned to the familiar voice.

"Inuyasha! You're okay!" Shippo said delightedly.

"…Yeah." He had his arms folded in his sleeves. Kagome came back from the hall behind them, but she said nothing. "Anyway, where the hell are they?"

"Miroku was poisoned in the forest, and Sango took him to the ship since no one else could carry him." Ezi explained.

"Still, glad to see you're okay!" Amy said.

Inuyasha's ear twitched. He could hear the conversation going on below: Kiba was being carried out, and Hinata was standing at the exit there with him.

"Forfeit the match if its that sand guy, or Neji. He'll try to kill you… and, we saw what that sand guy did in the forest, so that's a no brainer."

"Thank you for the concern, Kiba…" She said shyly.

"Hmm…" Inuyasha looked out at the sand ninja parallel to them; so it had been the sand people that had caused the bloodshed he and his team had come across. It would be pure luck if none of his comrades had to face someone capable of such gore.

He sniffed the air. "It smells like a sweaty dog in here."

"Hey! You healed pretty fast!" Naruto noted as he buzzed by to rejoin Sakura. Kagome kept quiet, but she noticed something about the strange boy she had not seen before.

"…Anyway, what should we do if Sango and Mirkou aren't here?"

"I-I'll go look for them! Sango could be on her way back!" Sora darted out, and Donald and Goofy followed to help.

"Yeah, at least with one of them here, they could win automatically." Ezi said. "Damn! This is not looking great for us…"

Gekko could already see something was wrong. "Where are the contestants for this match?"

The Hokage was also concerned.

"Uh, bathroom break?" Sonic fibbed.

Gekko cleared his throat. "Since neither are able to participate—"

"Wait! They'll be here, any second!" Amy insisted.

"I'm sorry, but if neither of them are present, there's no proof they're capable of fighting." He coughed. "They're disqualified."

The Hokage smoked his pipe. "Well, that's disappointing.'

"No…" Ezi said to herself.

The board dinged again with a new match, and caused the sun ninja to be slightly startled:

Sonic

V

Knuckles

Knuckles gaped at the sign. Sonic said nothing as he coolly sauntered down to the arena.

"H-hold on!" Ezi said. "Isn't it strange that two teammates have to battle?"

"Like I said before: the board chooses randomly." Gekko answered.

She cursed inwardly. If they had their own, separate fights with ninja from other villages, at least they both had a chance of moving on to the next round instead of just one of them.

"This wasn't random," Knuckles said, seriously, "this was destiny."

"Oh brother." Amy rolled her eyes. Knuckles entered the arena as well and stood across from Sonic.

"My, they're a colorful crew, aren't they?" Anko seemed dazzled by the blue and red animals that were about to brawl.

"I can't say the same for their last few battles; they were a bit dull, but with a few abilities to keep in mind, to say the least." The Hokage had been analyzing the new and old villages he had not seen before, of course. The only one he had found impressive so far among them was Shadow's performance.

"You may begin whenever you are ready." Gekko started the match.

"Hey, why don't you save me the trouble and just forfeit so I can move on?"

"Always messing around!" Knuckles scolded. "This is why… I can't…"

"Huh?" Sonic tilted his head.

"I can't let you continue, Sonic! You think everything is just a game, even this! Well, I'll show you I'm more capable of moving on and saving all of us!"

"Whatever you say, knucklehead!"

They both took a stance, ready for action—and the echidna and hedgehog prepared for battle.

"Come on, Sonic! You can do it!" Amy cheered.

"Hm, I'd feel bad if I cheered for just one of them." Shippo admitted.

"Yeah! Go Sonic!" Naruto yelled.

"Hmph, it doesn't surprise me that you have your fans here already." Knuckles sneered.

"I won't go easy Knuckles, just for you." Sonic winked.

"Neither will I." He patted his fists together, and the gloves turned yellow.

The battle began—Knuckles went erratic first, punching and swinging his fists at an impossible target. Sonic leapt into the air, rolling into a ball as he shadowed the wall, and used it to spin faster and faster until he kicked forward, flying towards the ground and towards Knuckles. He caught the spinning hedgehog, and the pressure forced him sliding back on the concrete. He finally gained enough control of the speed in his grip, and jump up, slamming Sonic into the ground as his body unfolded. As Knuckles landed, he planned to bury his fist into Sonic's back, but despite the dent in the floor he had formed, he used the force that bounced him back up to hop away.

"Knuckles is serious! He's trying to give Sonic a beat down!" Sora exclaimed as he walked in.

"Any sign of 'em?" Inuyasha nodded his chin towards him.

"Ah," Sora shook his head, "no sign of Sango or Miroku."

"Damn monk," Inuyasha snorted, "getting himself almost killed just so he could go on!"

"Says the guy who went berserk in battle!"

"These exams are straining all of us," Cloud approached, "so I guess they're pretty effective."

"Will you all stop blabbering and watch the fight?" Amy snarled. They said nothing to respond as they loomed over the rail to see Sonic had kicked Knuckles in the face. He flew into the air, but landed gracefully beside the hand sign statue.

Knuckles wiped the blood from his cheek, then looked around for something. He dug his gloves under the corner of the stone platform that the statue, growling with all of his power and lifting it from the concrete. He swung it up, and threw the giant piece at Sonic.

"Whoa!" Sonic swiped to the left, avoiding the block easily, but Knuckles was already there, and he punched Sonic in the cheek, and they both flew up and back into the rubble and dust. Before it could clear, Knuckles threw Sonic out into the middle, where he rolled and coughed, but weakly attempted to stand up again.

"You see? You're goofing off will do you no good in the 3rd exam!" Knuckles sauntered towards him. "Just give up!"

Sonic rolled and scrambled onto his feet like he was dizzy. "Well, your cranky pants sure aren't going to help us either now, are they?"

"Enough!" He punched and Sonic jumped away, repeating the actions several times with ferocious velocity. At a far enough space, Sonic began running around , encircling Knuckles in a twister of wind that grew higher and higher, like a tornado. Before Knuckles couldn't be seen by the dust storm that was picking up, he fell to his knees, his grasp for air coiling around his neck. Sonic stopped running, and the area cleared; there was nothing there but a hole in the ground.

Sonic twisted his head about, scanning the ground.

"Whoa, he dug underground?" Naruto realized. The whole lot seemed to be looking around for some sort of patterns or dents being forged in the ground.

"Hmph, there he is…" Neji said.

"Huh?" Sonic turned around too late. Knuckles exploded from the ground like a red rocket, drill clawing his way towards the blue blur. Sonic just moved out of the way, but the force of the attack knocked him back into the wall.

"Knuckles is really trying." Kagome said.

"Yeah! Sonic better think of something, quick!" Shippo hopped onto her shoulder.

"Come on, Sonic!" Amy screamed. "Show 'em what you're made of!"

Sonic shook his head from the impact, and he started running around Knuckles again.

"Man, he is really fast!" Lee's eyes danced in a circle as he followed.

"Is that some kind of jutsu he's using? There's no way he's actually that fast." Shikamru looked pale, almost worried.

Knuckles attempted to follow him with his eyes, until he gave up. In a fit, he hoisted his fists up, then smashed them down into the ground, creating a ripple that shook all around him. It knocked Sonic off his path and he went rolling. Knuckles turned around and tried to throw down his fist on his fallen opponent, but Sonic managed to roll and zoom away. He rolled his body up the wall, then used it to propel in the air above Knuckles.

"Sonic Wind!" Sonic spun around, and a whip of blue wind sprouted from the ground under Knuckles' feet. The wind engulfed him, and he cried out as the gust cut through him. He flew high into the air, and when the wind subsided, he began to glide.

"Damn, I won't give up!" He said through gritted teeth. Sonic came down and tried to punch his face, but Knuckles blocked, then he kicked him in the stomach and flew back into the wall hard. With his eyes squeezed shut, he slid onto the ground and fell forward.

Sonic landed as well, out of breath, a few meters away from Knuckles.

"That blue animal surely has true speed." Lee said.

"He's a hedgehog!" Naruto corrected.

Knuckles' arms were wriggling as he stood up. "I… can't… lose…"

The Hokage smoked his pipe. "Hmm, they've both suffered through many attacks, but they've showed incredible stamina."

"Sir?"

He chuckled. "The blue one is all fun and games, like Naruto. He just won't quit."

"Hm. You sound as if you like them, Hokage." Anko said smugly.

"Well, they appear more carefree than the sound, or even our allies, the sand; they even seem to have made acquaintances with the genin."

"Yeah, but a few of them are kind of creepy, like the long haired ones." Anko nodded to Aritob and Sephiroth.

"Indeed. There seems to be a line between the teams from the sun village."

"Hopefully, it doesn't cause trouble within our own village."

As the fight continued, everyone watched Sonic speed to kick and to block against Knuckles' ferocity in strength and power. They fought back and forth this way for a few moments, everyone quiet as they two never seemed to wane in their separate abilities. Sonic would make an obnoxious face to tease, and he'd regret for a slight moment as Knuckles would almost make contact with him in his anger, instead punching the earth or walls or air.

"What an odd pair." Kakashi stated.

"How so?" Ezi overheard.

"Well, granted they are animals, so their reflexes are much more agile than a humans. Still, they do possess extraordinary physical feats."

"They are special." She nodded.

Sonic and Knuckles had unexpectedly agreed upon something without thought; they had backed away from each other and were now taking a moment to catch their breath. They both looked damaged from the second exam, and even more so now with sweat intertwined in their fur, and tiny scratches over their bodies that had ripped through fur and flesh.

"Just… give it… a rest… Knucklehead!"

"I ain't… gonna… quit!" Knuckles wiped his cheek. "Why… why do you have to be the one to win, huh? Because you're _Sonic_?"

"Well, yeah." He snickered.

"It doesn't matter what planet we go on, what new challenges we face… you're always the same!"

"Thank you."

"I'm serious! This is exactly what I'm talking about! Don't you care where we are? Haven't you been preparing mentally for what's next? No! You just goof off and hope whatever happens you still get run around in your stupid red shoes!"

Sonic said nothing this time. It clicked in the back of his mind that there was definitely nothing true about what Knuckles was saying, that if they were really true friends, Knuckles would know Sonic's attitude was a way of coping with things and staying positive.

"I've had it!" Knuckles yelled. His breathing controlled, Knuckles raised his arms out to his side. "Master Emerald…"

"Huh? What's Knuckles doing now?" Sora asked.

"The emerald…" Ezi pondered. "Hey, Amy, is the Master Emerald back at our… hideout?"

"Hm?" Amy looked over the rail to make eye contact with Ezi, despite the people between them. "Um… yeah…"

"I wonder… he might be summoning the power of the master emerald to help them."

"The Master Emerald?" Sora echoed. "T-that means he'll be super strong, right?"

"I don't know. I don't know what's going to happen."

Knuckles continued. "Master Emerald, guide me! You are trapped here in this strange world; give me the strength to help you return to the land you are sacred to! Give your guardian the strength he needs to help you!"

"What is he yelling about?" Naruto looked irritated with arms folded.

"It sounds like he's doing some kind of summoning." Sakura analyzed.

Knuckles' body lifted into the air, a green light embodied him, and it grew brighter around his cuts and bruises until they were no longer present. The light disappeared and he landed slowly back down onto the ground.

"He… He healed!" Amy gasped.

"Oh, crud." Sonic muttered, who was still out of breath.

Knuckles punched his fists together. "You'll get what's coming to you, Sonic!"

"The blue rat's gonna get it, now that he has his energy back." Inuyasha speculated.

Sonic tried to stand up straight, wobbly, and at that moment, Tails and Sango appeared racing in from the hallway.

"What's going on?" Tails asked.

"Hey, Sonic and Knuckles are fighting!" Amy cried.

The two said nothing as they joined in the view. Knuckles came at Sonic with such a force, one could see the energy and air being sifted by his fist, and every reign came down upon Sonic. He dodged the first three swipes, but there was impact on the fourth hit at Sonic's face. The power was so intense it flung Sonic all the way across the arena and into the statue. It cracked the palm of the hand, and Sonic lay against the wall with a loud groan of pain as he sunk his head down.

"Sonic!" Amy yelped.

"Oh no, Sonic! Get up!" Tails cried.

Knuckles grinned. He couldn't help it. All of his work, all of his efforts were finally coming to fruition in a sheer stroke from his powerful fist, and he could feel the energy from the Master Emerald rejuvenating him every second.

"What?"

Gekko took a step forward, then he stopped.

"How? You should be knocked out!" Knuckles yelled.

Sonic had already stood up, and he looked up, smiling. He raised up a golden ring, something he must have had in his possession the whole time.

"You?" Knuckles was flabbergasted, but he knew.

"A golden ring?" Tails said. "I thought he had used the last one against a demon we fought on the last planet before this one?"

"Apparently not. He must have been saving it." Inuyasha scoffed. "The rat's full of surprises."

"He was never tired, then?" Kakashi raised his eye brows. "Ah… He's been faking it the whole time."

"Yeah! Get back up when they knock you down, Sonic!" Naruto cheered.

"So what if you have the power of the ring?" Knuckles growled. "I'm even stronger now with the power of the Master Emerald!"

"That's what you think, Knuckles!" Sonic spun into a ball; he spun continuously for so long in the same place, he began grinding through the material of the statue's foundation, until he zoomed up and out towards Knuckles at an incredible speed. Knuckles blocked his head, but that wasn't Sonic's target; before Knuckles could see it, Sonic reflected off the wall behind Knuckles, and used it throw himself into Knuckles' back- a spinning vortex that merely crushed into him. Everyone was shocked at the impact, it was clearly a harsh blow and it caused Knuckles to roll uncontrollably until he bashed into the wall. He was out.

Gekko approached Knuckles. He checked his vitals then stood up. "Since his opponent is no longer able to continue, Sonic is the winner."

"YEAH ALRIGHT!" Amy jumped with joy. "GOOD JOB, SONIC!"

"I knew you could do it!" Tails added to the cheering.

"Poor Knuckles…" Sango said. "He really wanted to win."

Knuckles managed to sit up on his own. Sonic stretched his hand out to him. The echidna glared at first, looking at his glove as if he would munch it off, but he took it and used it as an aid to stand up.

Sonic smiled. Knuckles did not.

"I know I'm still right… why does it have to be you?"

Sonic said nothing. He helped him limp back up to the second floor, so the next match could begin.

"Wow, you both did really well." Sakura said as they brushed by.

"Hey, Sonic!" Naruto jumped onto their path, blocking it. "Teach me how to turn into a ball like that—so I can go all—BOOSH—and knock someone out!"

"Hey, you don't need my help." Sonic grinned. "By the way, nice work on your match."

"Same to you!"

Cloud loomed over with his eyes at Sephiroth again, who was somehow always looking at him when he bothered to; his eyes clicked to the board when the names ceased to sort and the next round was displayed: Neji Hyuuga v Hinata Hyuuga.

The shy girl from Kiba's team, and the boy with long brown hair that Sango didn't like, took their places on the arena.

"Go Neji!" Rock Lee cheered.

As the battle began, the genin appeared enthralled by the match. Ezi took the initiative to investigate.

"They both have the same last name?" She said it aloud, but she resided by Kakashi on the rails.

"Ah, yes." He answered, much to her relief. "The Hyuuga are made of many, but they are cousins."

"Really? What's with their eyes? They look blind."

"No, that's just part of their kekkei genkai: The Byakugan."

"Oh!" She exclaimed. The battle began and the two Hyuuga's were hoisted into an immense hand on hand combat: chakra spewed from their palms and they reflected each other's striking palm attacks as they battled. "They are fast. Is that part of their kekkei genkai?"

"No, that's just from training so hard." Kakashi's head nodded to the movements of the opponents on the arena. "Their eyes are what what's make them special."

"Kind of like Sasuke's?"

"Yes… how observant of you."

"Just trying to understand things." She shrugged. "So, everyone from a single clan can possess the same abilities."

"Yes, that's the respected rule."

"So, are all the Uchihas jerks? Like Sasuke, then?"

Kakashi chuckled. "I take it you don't like him?"

"Well, not really… No offense to his clan, but he certainly has a way of being unfriendly that just makes you dislike him."

Kakashi nodded, folding his hands into his pocket. "Well, I can understand that. However…"

"However?"

Hinata had backed way form Neji. They both took a moment to analyze each other, and Neji spewed something about how pathetic Hinata was.

"Sasuke has no clan to represent. He is the last Uchiha alive in the village."

There was a shock. With his snooty, prideful agenda, Ezi had assumed he came from a wealthy clan—with a luxurious home and all the training a shinobi could get. It was shattered.

"You mean..?"

"It's not a secret, so you might as well know." He shrugged. "Sasuke is the last of his kind here. His entire clan was wiped out by a monster."

"A monster?"

"Not the kind you slay—a man."

She swallowed. "What kind of a man slays an entire village?"

"The kind that was part of the clan. Anyway, you can see why his behavior is a bit unstable."

She nodded. "Yeah… poor Sasuke…."

Sonic approached and stood beside her.

"How's Knuckles?"

"Eh." He observed the battle. Despite appearing evenly matched, Neji had pierced Hinata's arm, and there was no more chakra coming from her hands.

"Hey, what just happened?" Naruto slinked closer to his sensei for answers.

"Ah, Neji sealed off her chakra. There are 138 sources in the body that chakra can disperse from. According to Hyuuga inspection, if you hit the right source, you can seal off the others. Neji did this to Hinata when he aimed at the right source."

Neji pushed Hinata in her chest, and she slid onto the ground.

"I take it these two don't get along?" Sonic folded his arms.

"Neji is from a subordinate clan, and Hinata is from the higher rank of the clan."

"So, he must hate her."

Ezi speculated him, like he was a stranger with intuitive insight.

"You could say that." Kakashi answered.

Hinata attempted to stand up and pose to fight, despite her latest wound. Naruto looked perplexed and worried as his eyes fixed on the scene.

"I told you to give up." Neji warned. He raised one arm up and the other arm back behind him. They began and on hand combat again, Hinata's swipes more intense than before.

Sonic whistled in amazement. "That's some major fighting skills."

"They both have been trained by the Hyuuga clan's best."

"Come on, Hinata! Whoop this guy!" Naruto continued to chant and cheer; the others were compelled to silence by the match against the two cousins. They spun and danced as if they were in a play, rhythmically swiping and moving away in time of one other's strikes.

Hinata, the shy purple haired girl, was becoming more and more aggressive as the match stood. Neji seemed to be at her pace, maybe even faster, but they grew closer in their combat as she dodged his swipes—she had a shot now, one palm to his chest, that was all she needed to win—he moved aside and she slid by him, granting him the chance to plant his palm into her chin, and she flew upwards.

Amy shrieked and covered her eyes. Blood shot into the air form Hinata's mouth, but she backed up enough to catch herself and remained standing. She was out of breath, and she wrapped her arm around her stomach and began to cough. She stood tall again and held her hand out.

"She's out of power… why is she still trying to fight?" Cloud seemed just as concerned as everyone.

"They're only children…" Kagome said quietly.

"That won't matter in this world." Inuyasha answered. It was the first time either of them spoke since the end of his match. "If they were on a mission, that'd be kill by an enemy whether they were young or old. This place reminds me of the feudal era."

Kagome knew what he meant. The whole reason Inuyasha had lost control of himself from the beginning was fighting against monsters that meant to harm him and his dear friends; this time, monsters were roaming in all kinds of beings.

Hinata charged; her palm pressured against her side again, but she was obviously slower than before, despite her battle cry. As soon as they met, Neji's hand pressed into her chest, and a blue gush of light spewed from Hinata's back, confirming impact.

Neji Hyuuga stood still, but Hinata collapsed.

"That's it for her." Cloud said.

"It's over." Neji began walking towards the stairs, and Gekko declared Neji the winner- but he turned around in a fury when he could hear Hinata trying to stand up again. She struggled, her arms around her body, as she struggled to stand straight with her knees buckled inwards.

"I can still… do this…" She gasped for what little energy she could obtain.

"There's no point in acting tough. You can barely stand as it is." He sounded disparaging every moment he talked to her. "I can see with my eyes that you don't have any energy left. You've always held the burden of the Hyuuga Family title. You cursed your powerlessness and blamed yourself. But people cannot change. That is destiny."

"His Byakugan can see that?" Ezi said, sarcastically. "What a prude guy."

"He sure does like to blabber about what he thinks." Sonic agreed.

"Just give up now."

She shook her head. "Your wrong, Neji." He seemed puzzled by this. "You're suffering more than me."

"What's that?"

"You're suffering and confused for the fate of the head and branch families."

This ticked Neji off, and he went barreling towards her.

"Neji, stop! The match is over!" Gekko went running perpendicular towards them. In a flash, Guy was holding Neji back, Gekko was in front of him with two fingers pressed to Neji's headband, Kurenai held one of his arms, and Kakashi grabbed Neji's arm before it could reach Hinata.

"Whoa, they showed up just in time." Sonic looked to the right of him; the teleporting jutsu Kakashi had used was still lingering in a white smoke beside him.

"Why did all the jounin interfere? Does the head of the Hyuuga really get so much special treatment?" Neji did not seem to be worried, rather aggravated, by their appearance.

"Neji!" Guy chided. "You swore you would not fatally strike the head of the Hyuuga; you gave your word!"

Hinata made a loud cry and fell forward, gripping her heart. Kurenai ran to her aid, but Hinata fell backwards and lay on her back. Naruto, Sakura and Lee raced to aid. Everyone from the sun village watched in worry as they surrounded Hinata Hyuuga. She tried to say something to Naruto, but then she closed her eyes.

"What is this?" Neji sounded offended. "Hey, you, loud mouth!" He was speaking to Naruto, who turned to hear what he had to say. "I have to words of advice for you. First of all, quit with that unsightly cheering of yours; it's disgraceful!"

"Somebody woke up on the wrong side of the bed." Sonic commented.

"He really wanted to finish her off." Ezi squinted her eyes. "This kid is terrible."

"Second," Neji continued, "A loser will always be a loser. Those are the facts, no matter how much you cheer!"

"Do you want to try me and find out if you're right?" Naruto retorted. Neji smirked in response, and this triggered even more anguish in Naruto. He began to run towards Neji, but Lee slid in front of him just in time.

"Please do not fight him here, Naruto." Lee insisted. "Fighting him in a real match will be much more appropriate. And in the next match, that opponent could very well be me."

"…Fine." Naruto walked back to Hinata, and Lee gave his Guy sensei a thumb-up, to which Guy responded with the same action and a glistening smile.

It became serious when Hinata coughed up blood. Her sensei, Kurenai, unzipped her jacket, and placed her hand on her chest. In a state of shock, she looked at the one responsible, and he continued to smile.

"I wouldn't waste time looking at me; I'd figure out how to treat your student, first."

She didn't reply, but she turned to the medical examiners that were racing to the scene. They unrolled a white stretcher and rushed Hinata out of the arena on it. Naruto watched, with extreme dismay; the medical ninja exclaimed they needed to perform surgery on her within ten minutes, or she would surely die. They left the arena with Hinata, and Naruto took initiative to control the situation, then.

He slid his fingertips into Hinata's blood on the floor, where she had coughed up blood. He held hi bloody fist out towards Neji, and everyone watched in sheer shock as Naruto proclaimed his promise.

"I promise… I will win no matter what!"

It seemed to spark everyone's interest, even Gaara of the sand's as he watched Naruto scrap up the blood like it was nothing. What did he even mean by this?

"He's commited to win against Neji." Sonic said it so quietly, Ezi wasn't even sure if he was talking to her or himself. It seemed set to her that that Naruto would have to face this terrible child in the future, no matter what.

Hinata of the Hyuuga clan was rushed out, and everyone exited back to the second floor. Naruto had left the room to go wash his hands, but even so, everyone wondered about his statement. One of the medics returned with a broom and began scraping the drops of blood from the arena.

"Another match is going to start," Sango griped the rail, "but I still wonder about that last one: how much more bloodshed will occur with the remaining competitors?"

Sora's eyes lit up as the new match was displayed. "Probably a lot in this next one."

"Oh no…" Ezi looked at the names, something she had seen before, under different circumstances.

Cloud Strife

V

Sephiroth

"Cloud?" Sora looked at him for some sort of answer, as to whether he should go through with it or not. For Cloud, there was no other choice. He marched to the stairs, but Ezi blocked his path.

"Cloud! This could get dangerous in here if you two fight."

"This is my chance." He said quietly. "I can stop him before he hurts anymore people." She hesitantly moved over as he headed for the stairs.

On the other side of the room, Sephiroth began sauntering behind everyone there to reach the stairs.

"Good luck!" Aritob yelled, almost mockingly.

"Is he really going to fight Sephiroth here?" Knuckles said, worried.

"Yeah… this is going to be intense." Sonic stood beside Knuckles.

"That guy with the silver hair is… kind of creepy." Sakura admitted. Naruto agreed, and he ran over to Sonic for details.

"Hey! What's with this guy form your village?"

"You mean Sephiroth? He's kind of a bully, but he's strong."

"Were you guys ever friends?"

"No way! We don't exactly get along with his team, sort of how like you don't get along with Neji. He's not really the friendly type, just bad news."

"But the guy with the giant sword is good, right?"

"Cloud is, yeah. He's just moody and no fun sometimes, but he has a good heart."

"You got this, Cloud!" Sora yelled.

"Yeah, give 'em the old heave ho!" Goofy chortled.

Sephiroth gave them one look as he sauntered onto the arena, and it sent chills to Donald and Goofy. Sora remembered Sephiroth's entrance from the first time he met him at the Olympus Coliseum:

The dark red sky glowed and sparkled by a summoning symbol of great artistic measure, and he poured down to grace the earth with his dark body and power, like a descended angel of pure, quiet chaos.

Now, he was strolling with his dark cape like a regular human, preparing to fight like the rest of them.

"Do any of you have any objections to this fight?" Gekko asked.

"No."

"None at all." Sephiroth shook his head, all the while smiling at Cloud.

"Then when you're ready, you may begin." Gekko stepped away, and the two stood there.

Cloud slowly began to reach for the buster sword on his back.

"Aren't you wondering?" Sephiroth said.

"About what?"

"How I am here?"

"I don't care."

Sephiroth chuckled. "You should care, Cloud. It has a lot to do with you."

"What does that mean?"

"This place is full of more putrid spirits. They do nothing but harm one another; this planet with their wars. Thanks to you, I have a new place to cleanse."

"You're insane." He whipped his sword out from over his head. "I won't let you hurt anyone!"

"Ah, Cloud. Even if you could stop me, I don't see how you want to. If only you could understand…"

"I understand enough!"

Sephiroth's sword was out in a second, blocking all of Clouds inhumanly fast swings. With one hand gripped to his Masamune, he continued to shield himself as if the strikes were nothing.

"Whoa, they're both really fast." Sakura analyzed. "I've never seen a swordsman move like that before."

"What's going on? Sephiroth is only on the defense." Ezi realized.

"Its almost like he's toying with him." Sonic said.

Cloud stepped back. He felt weak, and he hadn't landed a mark on Sephiroth yet.

Sephiroth began to sway to the left. "You seem a little off today, Cloud."

"Shut up!"

"Well, it doesn't matter. I foresee this battle ending much differently than our last one."

"These two have been at it before?" Naruto asked.

"Sephiroth and Cloud have history together. They were both, uh, officials that protected our village; then Sephiroth went crazy for some reason." Ezi's grip tightened on the rail; something was wrong.

"Am I the only one disappointed?" Sonic asked. "I expected these two to be going at it, not talking and barely swinging at each other."

Cloud charged for him again, and the same thing happened. Sephiroth blocked his steps with swift steps and his Masamune, then he cast some sort of fire from his hand that Cloud had to roll and dodge, then block Sephiroth's swing of his sword. Then, he was behind Cloud in a second.

"What the-? Cloud, look out!" Sora exclaimed. Sephiroth had already kicked him forward, but he had appeared in front of Cloud, and Cloud managed to block his next swing just in time.

"What on earth?" Sango said.

"Its like when he fought me in the Coliseum." Sora said. "But, he wasn't that fast at it. He doesn't even have his wing out to use his power!"

"It is a shame, Cloud." Sephiroth taunted. "Without mothers power, you've become weak."

"No! You're wrong. We're still evenly matched!"

At this, he chuckled. "Oh, Cloud, you're so wrong." He whipped his sword down. "I've become much stronger, and now I can still fulfill my destiny."

"You only have one destiny!" Cloud tried to strike, but Sephiroth was behind him in a ring, and he slashed horizontally through Cloud's back.

"Cloud!" Ezi yelled.

"I can't watch!" Amy covered her eyes. There was a stillness in the air for a split second as Sephiroth began his attack. He continued to appear and disappear, back and forth in a line, cutting at Cloud as his swings tossed him around. Cloud's black clothes mixed with red as he was being cut here and there; Sephiroth was going so fast, he even began tossing him in the air like a bag.

Everyone was speechless, just waiting for the attacks to end. Cloud grunted in pain with every swing, until they were higher than the statue, and Sephiroth did one final blow: Flying down in a blue light through Cloud with his blade and landing on the ground. Cloud crashed passed out on the ground beside him.

"I told you I would never be just a memory, Cloud."

There was a split moment of shock. Cloud remained on the floor for a long while, bloodied and lifeless. Gekko announced Sephiroth as the winner, then Sora, Sonic, Ezi and Inuyasha hopped down from the balcony.

"Cloud! Wake up!" Sora cried. He slid down beside him to check his vitals. Sephiroth didn't even turn around to look at them as he walked back to the staircase.

"What the hell just happened?" Knuckles whispered. "I thought Sephiroth and Cloud were matched!"

"He just defeated him like he was nothing." Sango was just as mesmerized as the rest of them.

Cloud started coughing, and there was a slight relief from everyone.

"Cloud! We got you, buddy." Sora and Inuyasha wrapped their arms on either side of Cloud, dragging him off the arena. His head was hung low, some form of shame, or he was just exhausted. To see Cloud like this caused Ezi to stir her head around and give a Sephiroth a dark glare. She was startled to see he was already looking at her as he stalked up the stairs, smirking with a sinister glow of green in his eyes.

She shuddered. Sonic tugged at her black tank top and broke her concentration. "Let's head up with them."

"Sonic, I can't believe Sephiroth just defeated him so easily."

"Yeah, me neither."

They followed behind the others and as they walked, Cloud sighed.

"Cloud, you okay?" Sora asked.

"…No…" He coughed some more. And even coughed up blood.

"Dammit. You need to heal fast. You lost a lot of blood by those cuts." Inuyasha said.

"Its not that… Sephiroth… he…"

"Yeah, he got way stronger!" Sora exclaimed. "Who would have thought he could move like that? It's not your fault, Cloud."

"Still, I didn't stand a chance against him…"

"Don't let it get to you! We'll help you in this fight!"

"But I… lost. That means Sephiroth gets to move on in the exams, and he could hurt any of you. This world is in danger… Sora, be careful."

"I will. Still, it's sort of weird that he is just going along with these exams; what's that creep plotting?"

"He kept me alive when he could have easily killed me." Cloud stated. "So, he must want me to witness whatever he is planning."

The medical core raced in and Sora and Inuyasha placed their weary friend on the stretcher, and they zoomed him out. Sora and Inuyasha passed Rock Lee as they reached the balcony again. His round eyes turned to Sonic and Ezi as they approached.

"Hello." He said. "I just wanted to say I hope your friend recovers soon."

"Thank you; Lee, right?"

"That is correct."

"I'm Sonic. Nice to meet yeah."

"I'm Ezi. Nice to meet you too, Lee. You seem nice, like Naruto and Sakura."

"I also wanted to thank you for assisting our village. But please, and do not find this harsh, do not mistake my niceness for weakness."

"No way, never, dude." Sonic winked. "So long as you think the same way with us."

"I also wanted to say you did very well on your match," he turned to Ezi, "And, good luck on yours."

"Same to you; you know, we both haven't had a match yet. What if we end up fighting each other?"

"Then it will be my pleasure to battle with you."

She chuckled. He sounded so official and respectful in his factual speaking. "Same to you, Lee. Hopefully one of us is fighting soon."

"Thank you, but I do not think it will be me."

"Alright!" Guy sensei approached them. "This could be it! Are you ready, Lee?"

"No!" Lee pouted. "I have been waiting for so long, I might as well go last. Sonic noticed to the left of him that Kankuro, the bully from the sand with the puppet and magenta lines on his face, had come over to their side of the balcony and was speaking to Naruto by the stairway.

As they spoke, Gaara of the sand appeared on the arena before the names were finished scrambling.

"Huh? What's that weirdo doing?" Amy wondered. Then, the next match was displayed on the board:

Gaara

V

Rock Lee

"Alright!" Lee began kicking the air in excitement. "I knew if I said I wanted to go last, I would go next! It is a method of reverse psychology!"

"Wait a go, Lee; that's my student!" Guy declared, giving him a thumb-up.

"They're both kind of weird, huh?" Ezi whispered to Sonic.

"Eh, I kind of like 'em, though. So much energy."

"Still… that sand guy got down there even before the match started. He seems dangerous."

"Hopefully, Lee will pull through."

Guy patted Lee on the shoulder. "Let me give you some advice!"

"Yes sir!"

"That gourd on that guy's back is suspicious; be cautious of it!"

"Oh, you are right, sir!"

"…Hopefully, he will do okay." Ezi said again. Guy and Lee were comical, in their own way.

Lee hopped down and prepared to fight, placing one hand upward and the other behind his back, standing erect towards Gaara. Somehow, the gourd's cork had been flung so fast towards Lee without anyone noticing, but Lee caught it just before it reached his left eye.

"Why are you in such a hurry?" He dropped the cork.

Kankuro scoffed. "Whatever moves he's got, he's no match for Gaara."

"No… he's strong." Naruto insisted.

As the battle began, Lee dashed towards Gaara and flipped in the air sideways.

"Leaf Hurricane!" He spun and tried to kick Gaara in the face, but a wall of desert sand covered that whole side of his body, forcing Lee to drop down; the sand was spiraling out from the gourd, and it went at Lee in clumps from above to crush him, but he went rolling in the air backwards and slid away enough as it slunk back towards Gaara slowly.

"What an unusual technic." Kakashi observed. Despite the sand, Gaara taunted him, and Lee began flipping and spinning around Gaara, trying to kick him or make some sort of contact, but the sand blocked him every time.

"He can control sand?" Sango gasped. She remembered the dismembered people they had seen in the forest, and how their body parts were sticky with blood and pieces of sand. If this as the same guy, surely, Rock Lee was in serious danger.

A lot had occurred so far; the first two mind bending exams, the preliminaries, and now there were only a few of them left. One of the most intense battles was just barely beginning.

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TO BE CONTINUED


	8. Scroll 8: Sand and Magic Steal the Show!

Scroll 8: The Two Great Fights: Sand and Magic Steal the Show!

Sakura Haruno was a very clever girl; she got high scores during her time at the ninja academy. Now, she was using her intellect to deduce the outcomes of the fight before her: Gaara, the red haired stranger from the Village Hidden in the Sand, against Rock Lee, the energized green beast of the Hidden Leaf, who had asked her out on a date and saved her life in the forest of death.

"Why does Lee keep using taijutsu skills?" Sakura was mashed between Guy and Kakashi as they watched the fight from the balcony. "With that sand always protecting him, there's no way he'll hit Gaara with that; why doesn't he step back and use some kind of ninjutsu technique?"

"It's not that he won't use it," Guy, Lee's sensei, explained, "it's that he can't use it."

"Huh?"

"When I first met Lee, he was totally unable to do anything. He can't use genjutsu or ninjutsu, after all."

"Really? I can't believe it."

As the match continued, Lee slipped on some of Gaara's attacking sand, and it raised above him in the air like a giant hand that crashed down on him. Sakura gasped, but was relieved to see him flipping in the air and landing on top of fingertips of the statue.

Guy gave Lee a thumb up. "Alright Lee, take them off!"

"Take what off?" Donald wondered. He watched with the rest of his unusual group of "Sun" ninja as they fight continued.

"But, Guy sensei! You said only to take them off in case my comrades are in peril!"

"That's right I did! But, this is an exception!" Retorted Guy dramatically.

Lee looked stunned. "R-Really?" He saluted. "Yes, Guy sensei!"

Lee unbuckled the yellow leg warmers on his lower legs to reveal he had leg weights around them.

"Totally cool!" Naruto commented.

"What are those?" Amy asked.

"The leg weights are used for training." Sakura explained. "They help you gain speed and stamina."

"What a cliché tools." Shikamaru grumbled.

Lee stood up with either weights in his hands and dropped them from the statue. Gekko stepped away when they hit the ground, because it was like a giant explosion when they bashed through the concrete, shaking the arena.

"You might have over done it, Guy." Kakashi said to himself.

Lee was gone in a flash, already on the floor again and kicking and punching at Gaara like before, but this time he was flying around like a gnat. He was flipping and punching so fast, it put a look of shock on even Gaara's face as his little bits of sand could barely block him in enough time.

"Lee can only do taijutsu, so we focused on that so he could be the best there is in that skill. He's unstoppable." Guy said proudly. Lee uncurled in the air and drop kicked down onto Gaara's head, and hopped away.

"No way… he actually injured Gaara!" Kankuro was astounded. Lee managed to punch him next, and he went sliding awkwardly onto the ground.

"He's so fast," Ino said, "my eyes can't keep up with him!"

"He could be as fast as Sonic." Inuyasha said.

"Uh, I doubt that." Sonic answered quickly. "Still, for a human, its amazing! I knew I liked him."

"Youth at full power!" Guy exclaimed. Then, Gaara stood up, and there was a wicked smile on his face as the sand slathered back onto his body, not a scratch on him.

"What the? He has sand covering his skin too?" Naruto realized. Lee understood his attacks hadn't actually cut through Gaara's skin, just the sand layered over his body being used as a shield.

"Gaara has the perfect defense," Naruto said seriously, "how is bushy brows gonna get through that?"

Kankuro was quiet, worried about something stirring from the arena. Lee unwrapped the wrap laces around his arms just slightly, but there was still enough on him to continue covering his arms. He crossed his arms up in front of his face, and an energy began to form around him.

"Looks like he's trying something new." Sonic analyzed.

Shadow landed from who knew where beside Amy, frightening her.

"Don't ever do that again!" She snapped.

"Shadow!" Sango ran to him. "How is Miroku?"

Shadow shook his head. "He's in a comma still. Rouge wanted me to return here so I could see the competition I'll have to face next."

"Oh, I see…"

Lee began spinning all around Gaara, sort of how Sonic had with Knuckles. He was behind him suddenly, and he kicked Gaara in the air. Gaara flew up high, but not high enough; Lee began kicking into his back directionally upward. Guy clapped his hands together and squeezed his eyes shut for a moment, as if he were praying this technique would work. Lee continued kicking, disgruntled, and then he swung around to float in the air behind Gaara. Lee's wraps unhinged and swirled around Gaara's body, tying him up so he couldn't move.

Lee proclaimed some sort of battle cry: "Primary Lotus!" Everyone stressed to watch the amazing technique. He grabbed onto Gaara and began spinning him around into a powerful vortex en route to the ground. The earth exploded on impact, and chunks of concrete went flying from the cataclysmic crater that formed and shook the room.

"Wow…" Knuckles was speechless.

Ezi thought about how she may never be that fast, even with all the training she had had; then she saw Gaara's body crack and cave into itself, like a shell.

"An empty shell of sand!" Lee was as mortified as everyone else; he had used his great technique on a substitution jutsu created by sand.

"It was when he was kicking him." Kakashi said, coolly. "He switched then." Sonic looked over at Kakashi, because the headband that usually covered his left eye was lifted up now. Kakashi had a scar through his eye, but his pupil was sharp and his iris was red.

Lee remained hunched over, and the real Gaara seeped from the ground like the sand that surrounded him, with a thrilled smile on his face. He held up two fingers and his sand sprang forward at Lee.

"Lee, run away!" Naruto said this, but Lee did the opposite. He blocked with his arms as the sand tossed him around like a rag doll into the walls.

"Why is he so slow now?" Sakura asked.

"It must have been that attack he used." Inuyasha said.  
"There's a reason the lotus is a forbidden technique." Kakashi enlightened. "It is a taijutsu technique only, so it takes a toll on ones physical body; one could even die if they don't perform well."

"Yeesh, no wonder he can't move." Sonic replied.

Guy was trying not to panic, but he was sincerely concerned for his valued student. He thought of how Lee tried and failed many times to reach where he was, but he never gave up. His stamina was only so superior because of his diligence, something he thought even Neji Hyuuga lacked.

Sango watched with major anxiety. "He could have crushed Lee like he did those men in the forest… He's must just be toying with him now."

Suddenly, Lee was disappearing in his speed and dodging Gaara's sand strikes again.

"He got his speed back!" Sakura cheered.

"Indeed," Guy nodded, "the hidden lotus blooms twice, after all!"

"Guy, you _didn't_." Kakashi scolded.

"Oh, we did. We went there, and Lee knows how to use _it!"_

"Do what?" Sonic asked. "Does Lee have another technique up his sleeve?"

"Quite so! And this one is sure to work!"

Lee separated himself from Gaara, barreling into the corner. Gaara waited with curiosity as Lee crossed his arms up above his head, concentrating on something. Whatever the skill, blue chakra began seeping from him, and the earth shook.

"This kid's full of surprises." Inuyasha was amused.

"Wow, look at all that power coming from him!" Shippo declared.

The pebbles of rubble floated around him, slowly at first, but the energy became faster and soared upwards. His skin was turning red, his hair raised, and his eyes were pure white. He threw his arms down as the energy poured from him.

Kagome gasped. "This boy… he has so much spiritual power."

"That's his chakra!" Exclaimed Ezi. "He must be using all of it for some major attack!"

Even the Leaf ninja were astounded at the display. Lee began to glow green, and when he dashed away, he dug into the ground so much, smoke and dust collected into the air, and no one could see what was going on in the center of it all.

"Gaara!" Kankuro yelled. Gaara had been tossed up in the air again, and the sand was just slowly following him up to protect him; not quick enough. The sand around his skin was cracking too.

Lee's red and green form was in the air above him, causing a ripple against the ceiling when he bounced off it into Gaara's abdomen, punching it several times. Gaara flung downward now, but Lee grabbed him by his waist sash, and used it as a rope to yank him back up.

"HIDDEN LOTUS!" The next punch was so dangerous, it went onto Gaara and he whammed back down into the ground, and an explosion of rubble forced everyone to cover their faces as the dust collided into their view for a few long seconds.

Lee cried out in pain as his exhausted body rolled onto the ground. He appeared normal again, with white dust in his hair and ragged green clothes.

"That must have been his last hit." Inuyasha said. "They both look out of it."

"Does that mean its another double whammy?" Shippo assumed. Everyone watched as the two writhed on the floor a bit more. Gaara couldn't move, but the gourd had turned to sand and cushioned his landing. He began raising his hand out with his fingers clenched towards Lee. Lee couldn't stand up, but in Gekko's mind he thought if Lee could just a little, he could be declared the winner; then the sand started slowly moving towards Lee from Gaara.

"Oh no! This guy doesn't quit!" Tails cried.

"The sand is going to Lee… what's he planning?" Sonic looked worried. Neither of them could really move now, but Gaara had the advantage with the sand. Lee tried crawling away, but the sand did eventually grab onto him by his left arm and leg. Gaara closed his raised hand into a fist, and the sand around Lee's limbs pushed into Lee, like it crushed him. Lee gave a tremendously terrible cry of pain.

His arm and leg were now broken, shattered.

Amy yelped at the noise, having seen so much violence so far, this was one of the worst things she had ever witnessed. Everyone else was horrified: the green beast had been injured severely now. From the shock of the pain, Lee passed out. Yet, this was not enough for the deranged sand ninja. With more of a grip, more sand went towards Lee after that.

"Die!"

"No, Lee!" Ezi cried out. He had already won, but for some reason, this had not satiated Gaara enough, and he was going to kill him with a final crushing blow. The sand poured down onto Lee's unconscious body, but a source of power knocked the sand away.

It was Guy.

Gaara sat up, looking appalled that he was there. He grabbed his head as if it were aching.

"But, why? Why save him, when he failed?" The sand ninja asked this to Guy.

"Because he's…" Guy sounded somber, a characteristic none of the sun ninja had seem from the benevolent man before. "…He's my student, and also because he is precious to me!"

Gaara stood up. "I quit."

"Quit? After all of that!" Knuckles sounded furious.

"The moment Guy entered the arena, Lee lost." Kakashi said quietly.

"So… it doesn't matter that he quit… Lee already lost…" Ezi seemed just as bummed out as everyone on their side was feeling.

Gekko was about to announce Gaara the winner, then Lee was standing suddenly. His bloodied arm and Leg were just hanging there, and he held up his other hand as if to continue fighting. He was twitching he was in so much pain, and the scene caused Gaara to turn and face him again.

"Having had opened the fifth gate, and his arm and leg crushed… its impossible he's still standing." Kakashi's eyes were wide.

Guy began sobbing; he could see that Lee was not even awake, but he was still standing.

"Oh, Lee…. You want to show your Ninja way so badly, even though you're unconscious."

"My god… he's unconscious and he still wants to fight? He has so much determination…" Sango was puzzled.

Guy gently held Lee in his arms and continued to weep. "You are a true, respectable ninja."

"The winner is, Gaara." Gekko announced.

Everything else after that happened in a series of one unfortunate event right after the other. Sakura wanted to go down, but Kakashi said that would make him feel worse. The medical core came and picked him up, but they analyzed his wounds at the scene. Naruto had dashed down for support, but it only infuriated him because he had to run past the sand ninja Gaara to reach Lee. He could over hear the medical ninja speaking to Guy. He told him the damage to his crushed arm and leg were extremely severe; so severe, he would never be able to walk the path of the shinobi again. The news echoed, and it was heartbreaking: one of the only masterful shinobi in the room would have to cease his dreams over this preliminary battle.

"That… That can't be true…" Naruto was frightened. His shinobi way just couldn't have been taken away from him. Rock Lee, the enthusiastic green beast—it was just a stupid preliminary round—his life's destiny was changed; just like that?

The medical ninja hauled him out carefully, but Naruto was still in denial.

"Its not right! Isn't there something you can do?" He called to them. "There must be something you can do!"

Kakashi appeared behind him. "Calm down, Naruto."

"No, Kakashi sensei, why did this have to happen?"

He sighed. "Lee went to great lengths to win, even using a forbidden jutsu… that may have been his downfall. But, he did it so he could fight shinobi like Sasuke and Neji… even you, Naruto. Don't forget that."

Guy was stiff. Naruto headed back to the stairs when Lee had been exited out of the room, and Kakashi comforted Guy.

"Guy, I know this is hard, but don't blame yourself, and don't give up on Lee." Guy said nothing, so he continued. "Let's head up to the next floor with the others."

"…Alright."

Gaara used a whirl of sand to transport him back to the next floor beside Kankuro and Temari.

"Well, I knew that kid couldn't beat Gaara." Temari said smugly.

"All three sand Ninja made it to the next round." Baki, their sensei, said. "Good work."

Ezi's palms were sweaty. There were only four more contestants left, and that last battle gave her a shock. Seeing Lee try so hard, then fail—no, she had to get focused. She knew deep down who her opponent was going to be, and she had to be ready for it.

Naruto slunk back to his comrades, standing beside Sonic as well.

"Hey. He did really well. I wish these matches were based on effort."

"Yeah…" Naruto sounded upset. "But, this just fuels me even more! I have to do well the next match, even if I can't fight Lee like I wanted."

Sonic smiled. "Yeah. He'd be glad to see you do well still."

"Sonic… there's only two more matches left." Tails focused Sonic's attention to the names being scrambled on the board. His immediate thought was if Ezi had to fight either Aritob or the sound ninja, she would have to forfeit. Maybe she could fight the chubby Choji from the hidden leaf, but even then he was worried for her.

Ezi clenched the bar. She was extremely nervous, faint even from the thought of battling at this point. What skills would she have to reveal? What had her training she had done so far aid in her abilities and success for this match?

Aritob

V

Ezi Leon

It was meant to be.

.

.

.

~…~

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.

"Lee's fight was intense. I don't see how any of these other fights are going to top that." Shikamru decided.

"Yeah… that means I have to fight the sound guy, though!" Choji wailed.

Ezi looked at her name on the plaque, then at Aritob who was under it on the other side of the room. He was smirking at her.

Ezi took a deep sigh, then she started walking towards the stairs.

"Uh, hey! Good luck, Ezi." Naruto said.

She gave him a thumb up and continued on.

"Ezi," Kagome reached out to her, "he's _dangerous._ "

"I know what he is, Kagome." She kept walking without stopping. The sun village ninja were exchanging looks of apprehension. Sonic was at the staircase waiting for her.

"It's not a good idea to get on this guy's bad side… you could get hurt."

"I'll be fine-" He stepped in her way.

"He wants to kill you still, Ezi. This is his chance." He shrugged and smiled. "Come on, have some trust that Shadow and I will do well on the next match?"

"Have trust in me, Sonic. I can do this. We'll have a more of a chance of winning in the exams with three people instead of two."

"Ezi." She turned her head over to see Shadow with his arms folded.

"Be careful." He said.

She felt more support from him than Sonic. She nodded her head and hesitantly, Sonic let her go down the stairs.

"Don't stop the match you guys." She said.

"What is she doing?" Sango whispered to Kagome. They watched with close eyes as she and Aritob sauntered down the stairs parallel to each other.

"I know she has some more skills since we last saw her, but Aritob is…"

"She wants to do it, maybe to help, but should we stop her?" Kagome questioned.

As they walked carefully through the arena to the middle, their eyes were locked; Aritob's dark round eyes were smiling in the amusement of vengeance, and Ezi's were glowing green in a serious wary phase. She stopped. She had to walk around one of the craters Lee had forged in the last fight.

"Ah, we'll get to see more of their skill." The Hokage was a little more excited now. It had been many long battles they had stood and watched so far, boredom was settling in, but after Lee's battle, there was more hope for an intriguing battle.

"Well, they do have a unique set of skills we've seen so far." Anko concluded.

"The two hedgehogs and this girl got perfect scores on the nine questions on my test." Ibiki added. "So did the red one, but he lost hos match already."

"Beh, your stupid paper test!" Anko teased. "This is about intellect _and_ skill now. So, let's see what they can do."

Aritob and Ezi stepped to the side of the large crater in the middle of the arena, face to face.

"Do either combatants object to this match?"

Ezi shook her head.

"You couldn't have had a more suitable match, sir."

"Then, you may begin." Gekko gave them space, and Aritob snickered, smugly.

"Why are you trying to fight me, little brat?"

"I need to win to help my friends."

He laughed. "You won't do well on that if you're dead."

"You don't scare me." She held her fists up close to her face, and took a step back for a stance.

"You're not even going to summon the Phantom Gem? I mean, _my_ Phantom Gem?"

"Get over it, Aritob."

He scoffed with a confidence, and he wasted no more time. He darted to her, his sleeves dancing behind him, and he tried to uppercut the front of her, but she moved back. He tried to punch with his oncoming arm, and she moved to side and hopped when he tried to trip her, then she jumped back.

This was startling to everyone from the Sun village. Sora had dropped his jaw already, because he had had first hand experience in combat with Ezi. It had only been a year in Sora's universe, but years had gone by for Ezi. Still, she wasn't this skilled before. She had come to him recently and asked to train with him and Cloud, but they had not succeeded in this action yet because of the spiraling event of them crash landing in the ninja world. If she hadn't been training with him, then who. Had brought her up to speed?

"She's on the defense," Kakashi said to Sakura, "maybe she knows she cannot do well against her opponent and is stalling the inevitable?"

Sakura thought for a split moment of how Ezi and Sonic had helped them against the sand the sound ninja in different occasions. Still, it did not mean Ezi herself was an impeccable fighter, just kind.

"Hold still!" Aritob snarled. He continued to punch and swipe at her, and she continued to jump away from him, never turning away.

"Man, now that our matches are over, I just want this to end so we can get outta here." Kankuro was complaining to his relatives.

"Is this all this girl can do? Run away?" Temari was annoyed. "How did she startle you with that blue arrow in the village, Kankuro?"

"Hey, its not like I wanted to fight the punks anyway!"

"Shut up, both of you." Gaara sounded deathly irritated, and they both closed there mouths quickly. "Something strange is going on."

The audience continued to watch the fast dance of cat and mouse go around in a circle, avoiding holes in the ground from the much more epic battle they had witnessed just before.

In the back of Aritob's mind, he felt something was amiss; the child had gained much more agility, and this was obvious from just the mere fact he could not land a hit on her. There was a maturity in her movements, but it was not enough for her to claim the offense and victory.

Aritob stepped back himself to catch his breathing. Ezi stood there and waited for him.

"Do you think you can win by running away the whole match? By tiring me out?" He held up his hand. "Cura!" a fantastic green light that resembled a flower poured a green warmth onto his body. "You see? I will never run out of energy."

She said nothing still, which angered him more than it should have.

"What on earth is she doing?" Inuyasha sounded just as astounded by this mockery of a match as everyone was feeling.

"Well, maybe she thought this would work…" Sango shrugged.

"Yeah, but its like she's not even trying." Inuyasha reached his head out over the rails as much as he could. "Hey, kid! Get your butt moving or you won't win the match; you know this!"

"I'll admit I did not expect her to not fight at all," Knuckles folded his arms, "but don't you all think she's acting kinda weird?"

Sonic scanned the pale and stoic expression on her face. She was serious and committed; she just had to do well. He could not help but visualize all the times Aritob had done them wrong, even tried to kill them, and now she was in a pit with him.

 _The little girl lost in the cave, suddenly found a bright crystal of light, only to be attacked by envious darkness left and right._

"Enough of this!" Aritob raised his arms, then threw them down; his white blades encased around gold came from his sleeves and rested on his knuckles in some other contraption, and now was ready for the fatal strikes.

"Ezi, be careful!" Kagome cried. Aritob ran towards her with a yell of fury; he swiped to the left and to the right, swinging powerfully to get some drop of blood from her. She was doing well to avoid the swings, but then he used his foot again and she did not expect the trip, falling back a little, and giving him an opening to come straight down upon her with his blade.

Almost everyone gasped. Aritob was astounded, even though he was trying to bring it down regardless.

She had captured the blade between her hands. She twisted it to a horizontal position, forcing Aritob to sway with the change in motion, and with blade out of her way, she kicked him in his chest, and flew back far into west wall.

"Ah, I see now." Kakashi sounded more amused.

"What is it, Kakashi sensei?" Sakura asked.

"She wasn't running away before, she was analyzing his patterns and movement. Even without my Sharingan, I could see he moves in an odd, certain way. She must have figured it out now, and is using it against him."

Aritob was even more lunatic with frustration than before—he had no time to think though as Ezi had appeared in front of him. He moved his head away and jumped to the side, regaining his steps as he avoided her punches and kicks. He flipped back towards the center, then started attacking again, and they were traveling strikes back and forth at one another in a faster speed; it thrilled him.

"She's not using her sword, but, she's keeping up with him." Sora said. "I didn't know Ezi had so much mad skill!"

"Neither did I…" Sonic answered thoughtfully.

Despite Aritob's swings, she was quick to duck and parry; every moment she got, she punched him in the stomach or chest, then in the chin. It was miraculous to see the young child in pigtails was fighting a feared enemy in such close combat. She was on the ground again, but she had kicked him once more, and now he was tossed in the air. She bounced up and grabbed him by one foot, and flung him in some direction when she twirled; he scraped against the ground and rolled into one of the craters.

"Whoa! Did Ezi just do that?" Amy's shrill voice was too loud.

"Hey, Sonic," Naruto stood beside him, "what's going on? You all seem surprised or something."

"It's just… we didn't know Ezi had been training so much, that's all."

Aritob crawled out of the hole like a scorpion, his long black hair covering his face. He chuckled. He laughed and the echo almost gave Ezi shivers from how joyful he sounded.

"This is quite the unexpected surprise!" He shot up and whipped his hair from his face, revealing his insane smile. "How did you become so powerful? I do not know—but I do know that it has been a long while since I've had an opponent like this!"

"What's that weirdo yapping about?" Shippo said disapprovingly.

"I'm going to enjoy killing you a lot more than I previously assumed! The Phantom Gem will remain here like Excalibur, and this dull violent planet will be your grave!"

Ezi ran at him again, but he decided to change his tactics this round.

"Blizzaga!" He shot a cold spit of air at her from his sleeve, and she dropped down to dodge it. He continued throwing the icy attack and it whizzed past and behind her as she began to run in a circle, until she reached the statue. She jumped up and climbed onto it, perching on the top. She raised her arm out to her side, and her Phantom Gem appeared in a spinning motion until she grasped it, flipped it around her body, and pointed it at Aritob.

"Fira!" The balls of fire directed towards the sorcerer, and he glided upwards and spun, even whisked some away with his blades.

"What kind of jutsu are those? I didn't even see them use a hand sign!" Sakura wondered this aloud, but the real shinobi were thinking the same thing.

Kakashi was startled. He had seen the late fourth Hokage use jutsus without a hand sign, but no one else since then.

"Wow, so fire jutsu against ice jutsu, huh?" Anko said. The Hokage smoked his pipe upon questioning these abilities; no hand signs or jutsu so far.

He tossed blizzaga at her and she ran across the walls, a feat she had previously been unable to do, and he ran across as the icy attacks chased her from behind. Cold air brushed up to those on the second floor, until the ice attack had missed her again but clenched onto her crystal sword she had been holding. She turned to grab it, but another spur of ice blasted at her and she was forced to jump down.

"Blizzaga!" The ice blast came faster.

"Ezi!" Her friends loomed over the rail to see the damage below.

"Fira!" Her heated magic exploded with the ice before it could reach her, and she started running around again until they clashed in a hand to hand fight again.

"What? No way!" Sora exclaimed.

"What's wrong?" Sango asked, but their other friends listened in.

"Ezi used magic without her weapon!"

"That's not weird, is it? You guys use magic all the time."

"Yeah, but we need our weapons! Merlin trained us, and he taught us we needed a balance; an object the could use the magic in our hands so it wouldn't strain us."

"Well, she doesn't look strained or tired."

"That's what I mean! How on earth did she do that?"

They separated again, and Ezi took the initiative to summon her crystal sword into her hands again.

"Blizza-"

"Graviga!" Ezi's magic pointed above Aritob's head, and he fell to his knees, unable to stand for a moment. She was upon him quickly, and she punched him up in the chin, and twirled around and kicked him. He rolled and growled at once, standing just in enough time to block her kicks with his elbows, then swipe with the blades from his sleeves.

"Is it just me, or is Ezi actually kicking his ass?"

"Inuyasha!" Kagome scolded. "Of course she is! Still, it is surprising…"

"Yeah, what the hell has she been doing the last six months that got her this tough?"

"And how did she do it in the last six months?" Sango added. "That's just not enough time get this kind of power, especially physically; it would take years."

" _Years, we had."_

Not even Inuyasha had sniffed her out before she was standing beside all of them. The sun ninja had stepped back from the stairway in a panic to get away from the enemy in enough time.

Hm, Kakashi thought, I didn't see her come in.

A women in a dark red cloak and boots, black hosiery, pale skin and brown hair was standing beside the crowd. She was watching the match as if she'd always been there to do so, and her cunning smile revealed she had more in store for her abrupt appearance.

"Sorceress Kega?" Sonic raised his arm up in front of Amy. Knuckles prepared his fists. Kirara growled. Inuyasha's hands were at the sheath of his Tetsaiga.

"What the hell are you doing here?" Inuyasha demanded. The villainess enchantress that had sealed him and his friends away from the feudal era for a time was now standing before them.

"Relax, demon of the dogs," She continued to observe below, "I did not come here to irritate you."

"Then, why are you here?" Shadow snarled.

"Because, I came here to see my student fight. That is all."

It took them a moment. Sonic spoke first in an outrage: "There's no way Ezi is your student! She would never join you."

"Ah, she is my student, and she did join me, willingly."

"I don't believe you."

"What reason do I have to lie?" She stood up straight. "Ezi!"

Ezi jumped away from Aritob, and she shot up to see the woman with wide eyes.

"Kega?" Aritob addressed her.

"Ezi, what are you doing? Quit wasting time and finish him off."

"Yes… Sensei." Ezi pointed her crystal at Aritob once more, but he stood in unbelievable wake still.

"You trained her?" His shoulders were quivering.

"That I did."

"You, of all beings in this universe? Why? Why would waste time on such a pathetic creature?"

"That's for me to know and you to find out."

Ezi went at him again; fire twinkled around her fingertips, and he blocked and slang with icy, harsh blades. The movement was erratic and tremendous, and the unusual magic coming from both of their combat bodies entranced all who watched.

To leap away, Ezi dropped to perform a back flip- still on her elbows, she twisted her lower body and kicked him three times in the face, then twisted back to leap up and stand again.

Shadow watched and realized Kega was telling the truth; the young child who had allied the animals for so long, kind and gentle, but with spirit, could not perform in such a way as this before. In observation, she was also calm and collective, spite battling before a man that wanted her life to end. She had always been brave, but now with this power, she may now even be fiercer than any of them.

"Whoa, I didn't know Ezi was so good at taijutsu!" Naruto said excitedly.

"Neither did I." Sonic was nervous at what was before him. How had not seen this coming before? He was quick to notice her dexterity against the demon that attacked the hidden leaf, her way of blocking Aritob and Kadaj before the exam, her slow ability to keep up with him and shadow in the trees of the forest of death—but he did not picture this. It had unbelievable she had grown so much in such time, so his denial had ceased him from the truth.

"Hm, she's a bit slow." Kega mumbled.

"Whaddyah mean? She's kicking butt out there!" Knuckles defended.

"Ezi, hurry up and end this fight!"

She was out of breath. "Yes, sensei."

"Quit telling her what to do!" Amy snapped. "All this pressure isn't going to help her, y'know!"

"She can handle the pressure. It's the losing part I'm worried about."

"How did you even get here?" Kagome asked. "Why do you care if she wins anyway?"

"It's a long story. But, if you must know, Ezi came to me and asked me to train her, so I did."

"You decided to train an enemy, just like that?" Sonic questioned. "What's in it for you?"

"I owe you no explanation to that, but I'm willing to tell you all how I did so, if you're a bit nicer to me."

"How does a sword through the belly sound?" Inuyasha threatened. "That polite enough?"

"At the moment, we're all on the same side. It would be foolish to turn tables on me now. Besides, I don't think Ezi would approve."

"Like I care about her feelings! You locked us away from our home, what's to say you're not doing it now? You could be responsible for why we're stuck on this planet!"

"Don't speak so loud, puppy." She retorted. "I did not send you here, and I did not trap you here, either."

"Then, how did you appear?"

"It is not my appearance you should worry about." she pointed with her chin to the corner of the other balcony across from them, "It's him."

"Sephiroth?"

"Yes, and people like him. Creatures with power beyond your own, that could slaughter this entire complex if he found it suitable to. They are the ones to possess fear and fury over. Ezi understood this and sought me, so I trained her."

"In a mere six months?"

Kega continued to explicate while they watched the heavy battle between their friend and the sorcerer.

"I actually trained her for six years."

"What?" Knuckles rang. "What nonsense are you talking about?"

She smiled, as if in bliss to reveal her business to them. "I am a sorceress with powers beyond belief. I can control time and space with certain limitations, just as I was able to send you and your friends away for a short while, using the bone eater's well. It really wasn't a problem: Ezi and I went to a world outside of familiarity to train, a planet where time moves slower than it does in your galaxy."

Tails flickered his ears. "So you mean, just like how Mobius' time is slower than earth's time because of the different galaxies, you went to another galaxy that was even slower than Mobius?"

"Correct."

"Wouldn't that mean Ezi would be six years older now?"

"In a way, she is. Being from the Milky Way galaxy, she continued to age as if she were present there, but maturity wise, she has grown in a matter of six years, physically and mentally."

"I don't believe it…" Knuckles tried to argue.

"Believe what you will, or believe the results that are right before you."

The battling became a spectacular show; both supernatural beings were flying through the air, bouncing and running off the walls, and twirling their magic back and forth at one another, scratching for victory.

As they were in the air, punching and scraping, Ezi was victorious once again, grabbing him by the back and spinning until his body crashed into the ground. She hopped away and waited to see if he would rise again, and he did.

"That was a big hit! He doesn't have protection the way Gaara did, how is still conscious?" Sakura wondered.

"It seems, there are a lot of things we don't know about the village hidden in the Sun." Kakashi decided. They were indeed aliens; they could conjure things unfamiliar to his world, and they certainly were incredible in their own ways, all of them.

Aritob was laughing again. "You know," he stood up once more, blood around his lips, "I envied you in the power the Phantom Gem granted you, because I used to bear it with similar promise."

"What's this creep babbling about now?" Naruto demanded.

"I almost wanted to continue seeing it glow and create even more wonder, even if some brat was the one wielding it. But, I think I'm over losing it now: so I don't need you alive anymore to see its magic. It's time I said goodbye to my beloved Phantom Gem."

"He means to kill her here." Sango shuddered.

Ezi closed her eyes for a moment. Resting and restoring the adrenaline from their previous battling, then she attacked again. She swiped at him and he moved backwards to dodged until he was at the wall, and he bounced off and they were in the air again.

"Graviga!" The black force pulled Aritob down again, but his blade went loose from his sleeve and went for her, cutting her shoulder. She landed, gripping the injured arm, but blood was heavily trickling down from her arm onto the pavement.

Above them in the east balcony, Kankuro looked for a moment at Gaara. He seemed tense, but hopefully his own fight with Rock Lee had satiated him enough from going crazy.

"Next time, I'll cut through an artery my dear." Aritob picked up the loose blade from the earth.

She was tense when she summoned her Gem again, and they went into another heavy knife fight, swinging to make contact with the other. They danced quickly for a moment, but Aritob finally managed to slice the side of her stomach and kicked her back; she went rolling, but scrambled back up fervently. Aritob kept his space as he regained his air.

Ezi decided she also needed a moment, so she distracted him. "Aritob, why are you working with Sephiroth?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?"

"Why do you hate us so much?"

"You took my possession, and, your goals conflict with my own, which automatically makes us enemies."

"What are your goals now, exactly? Since the last one was foiled by us."

"I kept a promise to someone." He answered quickly. "One I intend to keep."

"You mean the one with Claira?" Kega's voice reached them below. "You truly are pathetic, _brother."_

"Brother!" Sonic's voice boomed. "Hold the phone, Aritob is?"

"Silence! We no longer became siblings after you left us for dead!"

"I only left you there because you were obsessed with power, Aritob."

"But you could have saved her at least! She didn't deserve what happened to her."

"It's weird hearing this bastard getting all sentimental." Shadow admitted. It was the first intense comment he had made.

Ezi sighed. "I'm sorry for your loss, Aritob."

"I bet you are."

"I mean it! I know how it feels to lose someone like that, but you have to think about what they would want. Would Claira want you doing this?"

"Claira would have wanted me to gain more power, so I could protect her." His voice of seething pain and anguish echoed. "But, she is gone now. Death, I'm afraid, takes too many companions and is not aware." He clenched his chest. "Then, when I gained the Phantom Gem, I cleansed the clans and villagers that sought our death, and I had planned to do more: But, a priestess managed to seal me away in an underground trail. The place you found me…"

"Preistess?" Kagome echoed.

"Yes… you know of a priestess, who could seal away the most dangerous spirits and consume the most precious jewels with tainted love?"

"K…Kikyo?" Inuyasha managed to say.

"Why do you think I despised you so much?" Aritob snickered. "But then, Sonic and his friends tried to ruin me when I tried to get my Gem back."

"So that's your beef with us?" Sonic concluded. "Give it a rest, dude!"

"That weapon aided in the vengeance I sought, but it was too late. And when you awoken me in the caverns, I had nothing to get revenge on. I blame all of you."

"Aritob…" Ezi raised her arm as a peaceful gesture, but he raised his with a blade.

"I will not give up on my goals. You will all suffer!" He threw his hand up to his face, a symbol with his two fingers up to his chin. "Shadow Clone Jutsu."

What formed was not a few, but a good two or three-dozen Aritobs that manifested in sight before Ezi. She immediately jumped onto the very point of the statue, and everyone else gaped.

As the real Aritob laughed, so did his doppelgangers in unison. "You cannot defeat me." They said together. "I am immortal. Also, I will not be won by the likes of you, you little brat."

She was out of options. She could fight them all if she had the energy, but he would win if they clobbered her, and she would be slaughtered in front of her friends. Something—there had to be some sort of solution.

"You have pity, so I will grant you a final chance to surrender before we have at you." All of them said.

She closed her eyes.

"Ezi! You have resources, use them!" Kega scolded.

She opened them. "Mister Gekko." The man looked up at her form below the statue. "It would be best if you left the arena and headed for the second balcony for your safety."

Her hand slide to the device on her belt and she clicked one of the buttons.

"What is she doing with her phone?" Knuckles observed.

"That's not a phone." Sonic realized.

"It doesn't matter what you do," they all said, "you will not be able to stop all of us!"

From the device, a pixelated light of blue formed in front of her, and it shifted into an anamorphic figure with its arms and legs spread out in the air. The pixels took form, and the creature was foxlike with violet eyes and yellow fur. It's tail wagged excitedly as the fox became a solid form before them.

"Renamon?" Sonic discovered then that her abilities truly had advanced in more ways than one; she had successfully summoned a Digimon to aid her.

"Renamon," Ezi said, "I need your services; attack the clones below, please."

"Well, since you asked so nicely," the Digimon folded her arms, and data striven pierces of light sprouted before her, and they moved to point downward.

"DIAMOND STORM!" The rain of sharp attacks darted quickly at all the Aritobs, and they scattered like ants. As they were shot and stabbed, they vanished in a flash of smoke until there were none left but the original, encased in a gory state. The large sliver had pierced all the way through his stomach and dug into the ground behind him, causing to be a display covered in blood. Even for the ninja who had seen war, it was an unexpected violence they had considered in a preliminary fight.

"She, she got him." Knuckles stammered. His friends stood in similar awe beside him as they continued to watch the battle.

Renamon reverted back to data and returned to the digivice on Ezi's belt, and the scattered diamonds across the arena dissolved into twinkling lights; Aritob's body splashed into them as he fell backwards. Ezi was already down in enough time to grab him and gently lay him onto the ground.

"I'm sorry… I, I didn't think the attack was so strong it could do this!"

Aritob coughed up blood. Cura continued to appear and disappear above his belly, but it did not heal the wound. "You're feeling sorry? Don't. I was going to do the same to you."

She was horrified with herself; ashamed she had made such a deadly strike in the first place.

"Well, you've certainly become worthy of the Phantom Gem, at least."

"I really am sorry, Aritob. I didn't know the Gem meant so much to you."

"I just thought… if I could use it to get revenge for Claira, I wouldn't have this pain anymore." He gasped and his eyes swirled around as he began hyperventilating. "It's so cold."

"I…I won't leave your side."

"It won't be long now… Maybe, I'll get to see her again. My sweet Claira…" His body began to sparkle; it cascaded into a golden light that soared up into the air, and was gone.

"He's gone? Where did he go?" Kagome wondered.

"He escaped." Kega enlightened. "But, I don't think he'll last long with that wound."

Ezi stood up with her head lowered.

"Since her opponent is no longer able to continue, the winner is Ezi."

"Yeah! Alright!" Shippo cheered.  
"Nice work, kid." Knuckles said.

"Yeah! Girl power! Wait a go, Ezi!" Sakura joined Amy in the obnoxious cheering.

"Impressive." Kakashi decided.

Ezi walked back up to her comrades. She was congratulated by them all, but she didn't cease walking until she stood behind Kega, who was propped on the rail.

"Sensei…"

"You were sluggish. Slow."

"I know. I-I hesitated to use lethal force."

"You've killed demons! Why would killing him have been no different?" She turned to face her. "You should have made sure you finished him off."

"Hey, quit bugging her, alright?" Inuyasha defended. "She won, didn't she?"

"Indeed." The sorceress folded her arms. "The point is for improvement, though, not barely winning!"

"Harsh," Sonic said.

"If you don't mind me asking, why did you come, sensei?"

"I came to see how you'd do and give criticism, of course."

"Do you know how to return home?"

"I know how I can. Unfortunately, I cannot muster the power to send all of you and your ship. Now, I have business to attend to."

"Hold on!" Inuyasha yelled. "You're not leaving until you get us out of here, too."

Ezi rolled her eyes. "Inuyasha, don't fight her-"

"Shut up! You're practically a traitor, so I'll get to you in a minute-"

"What?"

"-You will send us back!" He snarled.

"I most certainly will not, because I cannot. Trust me, if I could help my student, I would."

"Trust you? That's funny, coming from a witch like you!" Inuyasha pulled out his Tetsaiga. "We can do this the easy way or the hard way, lady!"

"Inuyasha, let her be." Shadow spoke.

"Huh, Shadow?" Most of them were surprised he decided to intervene.

"There's no point. She's telling the truth. The curse keeping us here is too strong. Besides, like she said, we're all on the same side right now."

"We were when her supposed brother was in the way! Now we don't need a reason to be mutual!"

"You're wrong." Kega responded. "That man with the silver hair…"

"Sephiroth." Ezi clarified the name.

"He is still a block in your road. Even if you could leave now, would you allow this maniac to remain here and destroy this world?"

"She has a point. We can't leave with the ship anyway to travel to other worlds until the curse is lifted." Kagome resolved. "Inuyasha, sit sit sit."

The dog demon was forced to propel into the ground. "What the hell is your problem?"

"I'll be off, now. Good luck with everything, kitties." Kega swayed her hips as she left through the hallway.

"Should we stop her?" Sango asked Sora.

"Nah, she's harmless for now."

Inuyasha crawled up using his sword. "Okay, now you wanna tell us why the hell you tricked us?"

"I didn't trick you!" Ezi snapped. "I just, didn't tell you what I was doing these last six months."

"You went with Kega of all people? Why?"

"Despite his temper, he may have a point…" Tails said weakly.

"Why?" She bellowed. "You all know why! If I had had the power I have now back then, I could have saved him! He would still be alive!"

"But Ezi, you weren't even there." Knuckles said quietly. "Even if you did have all this skill, it wasn't your fault what happened."

"You can't look me in the eye and tell me that if I had been there I couldn't have helped! I was useless back then."

"That's not true-"

"No it is true! I always got captured, or I was in the way, barely making success- if I had been stronger I could have saved him. And now, I want to be of more help to all of you; protect you guys instead of the other way around all the time!"

"But, why Kega?"

"I didn't know who else to turn to. I didn't want to ask any of you for help; I wanted to grieve alone. So I thought of the people I could recall that were exceptional in fighting. Thankfully, she chose to train me rather than kill me. Look, I'm sorry I didn't tell you guys. I needed some space and I knew you wouldn't approve of my decision, like how you're all being right now."

"We're not being anything," Sonic said, "we just wanted to know what the secrets were about. You could have just told us when you got back. But, I'm glad we know now." He gave a thumb up. Ezi smiled in response.

The final match was nothing to speculate over: Choji turned into a ball, and Dosu lazily moved around him since his rolling was so slow, then he used the special fist with sound that had made Kabuto retch into Choji, and the sound deflated him, causing Dosu to be the winner.

Ino and Shikamaru helped Choji out of the arena, then Gekko declared what they had long been waiting to hear:

"With all the rounds completed, the preliminaries are now officially over."


	9. Scroll 91: Get A Job!

**Scroll 9: Adventures in Ninja Land!**

 **A/N: Short Stories before the third exams. They are still relevant to the story; its also a chance for the crossover friends to get more acquainted. Enjoy!**

 **Scroll 9.1: Getting a Job!**

The winners of the preliminaries all stood in a corked line amongst the damage and rubble of the arena: Neji Hyuuga, Shino Aburame, Temari, Kankuro, and Gaara of the sand, Dosu, Sephiroth, Naruto Uzumaki, Shadow, Ezi Leon, and Sonic.

Kakashi left, asking Sakura to give him the details on the third round later. Everyone who had lost or were not participating remained on the second floor as the Hokage entered to face the winners.

"Cloud!" Sora exclaimed. The pale blonde limped in from the hallway with one crutch.

"Hey."

"You okay, man?"

"Yes. I'll be recovered entirely by the end of the week."

The Hokage observed the line-up of winners. _There are three from the Hidden Leaf, four from the Hidden Sun, 3 from the Hidden Sand, and one from the Sound._

"Congratulations to all of you that have made it this far. It is my pleasure to announce to you that the third and final chunin exam will take place in one month."

"A whole month from now?" Neji retorted.

"Damn, we have to be in this wretched place another month?" Inuyasha carped.

"It gives the other villages and you a respectable time to prepare for the next match against your opponents. The third exam will be displayed for the lords and kages of the surviving winners from each village to attend. This way we give detailed information on each match and invitations in enough time."

"What's the point of all this?" Kankuro demanded.

"This is mainly a respected opportunity for you all to prepare for your final round. It is safe to say you have all seen one another's abilities in the preliminaries, and now would be the time for you to train hard to prepare for your opponent."

Naruto decided right then and there that he would surely not wane in his training. Whether he were to battle Gaara, or Sonic or Sasuke or Neji, he would have to get stronger in this next month.

"Come on. Let's get to it so we can start training!" Naruto yelled.

"In a calm, orderly fashion, all of you are going to take a slip of paper from the box Anko is holding."

"Everyone stay where you are, I'll come to you." She walked down the line and everyone grabbed a piece of paper. Ezi loomed over to see what Sonic and Shadow in the middle, but instead she caught eyes with Sephiroth. He was smiling wickedly at her, insanely. She felt a chill, and she stood up straight. _What the hell is he staring at?_

Ibiki held up a chart in his hand. He told everyone to say their numbers, then a few moments later he turned the chart over for them to see:

Naruto vs Neji.

Sonic vs Shadow.

Gaara vs Sasuke.

Kankuro vs Shino.

Dosu vs Shikamru; Temari would fight whichever one of them won their match.

Ezi vs Sephiroth.

Ezi's eyes widened. Sonic and Shadow were startled as well at the results.

 _So, that's why he was smiling… somehow he must have known we were going to fight._ Ezi thought.

"I have a question," Shikamaru said after a moment, "If this is a tournament, does that mean only one of us will become a chunin?"

"On the contrary." The Hokage answered. "It will be more likely that more than one of you can win. There will be a crew of judges made of lords, including myself, that will be judging your performances to see if you have the necessary skills to become a chunin."

"So, we can still lose the match but become a chunin?" Temari asked.

"Depending on the performance, yes. But, as easily as all of you could win, all of you could lose too. This is another reason for giving you a month, so that you may show all the hard work you have put into your match, and in becoming a chunin."

The matches were official now and the time was set: Everyone left the accursed tower where the preliminaries had been held.

After the Hokage gave Ezi the invitation she was meant to give their village leader, the sun ninja returned with haste to their hideout: the Blue Typhoon, hiding a few kilometers away from the Hidden Leaf.

Everyone sat or stood in the infirmary room where Miroku was encased in glass upon recovery. They all ate chilidogs, courtesy of Sonic and Cream, and drank chilled sour punch.

"We have to figure out someway to show our skill in that fight." Shadow decided. "That way one of us will win."

"I'll train you guys!" Sora volunteered. "I can teach you more magic!"

"Thanks dude, but we need someone who knows Ninjutsu so we can show 'em we have shinobi skills." Sonic decided.

"Maybe one of the friends you made from the hidden leaf can help you out a bit." Cloud said.

"Good idea! We have access to the village thanks to Kakashi, so we can come and go as we please." Ezi enlightened.

Cloud continued. "In the meantime, the rest of us need to train as well. Sephiroth is still here, and any of you are faced with him, you must be ready."

"You mean, like how I'm facing him?" Ezi said.

"Out of the question! There's no way you're battling against him!" Kagome retorted.

"She's right: All we need to win is for Sonic or Shadow to show off some skills, then one of them fakes defeat or forfeits." Knuckles enlightened.

"I think it should be a forfeit." Shadow decided.

"Huh, how come?"

"If we are faced with defeat, the judges may find it more professional if we quit rather than risk our lives to win or pathetically keep trying when we've obviously lost. One of us will forfeit to ensure victory either way."

"Ooooh, I like that!" Shippo agreed.

"Still, we're trapped here for another month?" Inuyasha folded his arms, irritated. "There's no telling what Naraku will be doing for such a long time!"

"We'll have to endure it, and train here until we can leave, Inuyasha." Sango reminded.

"Then, it's settled. We'll live here and go to the Hidden Leaf when needed for help in training." Knuckles concluded.

"Hold on! What about our Harekage?" Ezi recalled. "The Hokage gave me our invitation before we left; he expected we'll be giving it to our, "Harekage", and then they can negotiate after the exams are over."

"Ah, we need someone to play the part of the Village Hidden in the Sun's Harekage." Kagome tapped her chin.

"I'll do it!" Sora said. "You had told the Hokage our Harekage was young, right?"

"I guess we can dress you up. All you'll have to do is sound official and sit beside him for the exams; we'll have left before you have to negotiate with him." Ezi smiled. "This could really work."

"I'll make a costume for you that looks like the Kages robes!" Tails said happily.

The excited group left the room, but Kagome waited and observed Sango rubbing the glass case near Miroku's face.

"He'll be okay, Sango. I'm sure he'll wake up soon."

"Tails said the poison went to his brain. He's lucky to be alive." She sighed. "When the swelling goes down in his head, only time will tell when he'll actually wake up."

"Miroku's tough, he'll pull through."

Sango's face went red when her stomach growled.

"Eek!" She said.

"You're hungry?"

"I didn't eat a hot dog. I realized there wasn't enough for everyone so I decided not to eat."

"You must eat!"

"Well, I don't think Tails' pantry will suffice for the month."

"You're right!" Kagome stalked around in a circle. "We'll have to get food from someplace else."

"We can hunt for food and eat fruits."

"Yeah, but you know we want to have nice meals as well! Hm, what would Miroku do?"

"He'd pretend he exorcised a demon in the wealthiest mansion for food and a place to stay."

Kagome smiled. "That's it! I'll get a job."

"Huh?"

"Well, I'm not gonna be much of help with training, and we need money to buy food. Why not?"

"That… actually seems like a good idea." Sango grinned. "Yeah, let's get a job!"

The girls left, deciding they would head for the village soon. The team took the rest of the day to rest after a long adventure through part one, two, and the preliminaries of the chunin exams.

~…~

The next morning had a sense of urgency and spirit in the morning dew, and everyone had their own plans for the day. Before she trained, Ezi decided to go with Sango and Kagome into the Hidden Leaf to aid in their hunt for some occupational possibilities.

There was, however, a lack of occupants willing to hire the two young ladies, which was unfortunate. Sango had managed a part time in a small weapons market, but it didn't suit Kagome. By the time it was noon, they had almost given up on the matter. There was a contest in the market streets to aim and hit the doll rogue ninja with a weapon from 100 feet away; the prize was a three course meal at the Yakiniki Q restaurant, so they had nothing to lose. Kagome went first and got it the second try, so they took their free coupon to the restaurant to cook some savory meats over the hot coals at their table.

"Salted beef tongue actually tastes rather good." Sango's face was stuffed with barbecue and several seasonings on the meat.

"Do you think you we should have told the others about this?" Ezi asked.

"No way! We earned it after looking all morning for a job!" Kagome insisted.

The waitress was catering to the table by the window behind them. "Sorry sweetie, all out of beef tongue until tomorrow. They sold like hot cakes at lunch!"

"WHAT?" The chubby Choji yelled. "I've been craving it all day!"

"You'll have to do with something else, Choji." Shikamaru shook the menu pamphlet open in his hands.

"Its your luck for losing in the preliminaries!" Ino teased.

"Hey, they were in the exams." Sango realized. The girls twisted their heads to see the table of three rookies conversing with empty plates.

"This stinks! I'm hungry for the beef!" Choji sprawled his arms out on the dry, off burner in the middle of their table.

"Do you want my beef?" Ezi called out to them. "Tongue isn't my favorite food anyway."

In a matter of a few seconds, Shikamaru, Ino and Choji had moved their pillows to the girls table; it had become an inevitable decision when Choji howled that he had accepted Ezi's offer and would in fact inhale the beef she had offered.

"Well, I guess it was your lucky day." Ino said, deciding quietly she was even more disturbed by her gluttonous teammate than before.

"Yeah, it was rather too nice of you to be handing your food out too us." Shikamru suspected.

"Oh, don't be mean." Kagome said smiling.

"Yeah, Shikamaru. Shouldn't you be more worried about the sound and sand villages? You are fighting hopefully both of them for the third exams." Sango said.

"Don't remind me. What a pain."

"What brings the Sun village back into our village?" Ino asked kindly.

"We were looking for jobs." Ezi explained. "I'm going to be training around here for a little so they thought they could be responsible and do some work here in the village."

"But, I ran out of luck. Couldn't find any." Kagome didn't appear too upset in her details.

"Hmm," Ino rubbed her chin, "this is perfect!"

"What is?"

"You can sub in for me, at my flower shop!"

"Oh, you want me to work there?"

"Only sometimes. I realized when billboard brow and I tied that I need to train more. You can come in sometimes and work during my hours so I can train more!"

"You call Sakura billboard brow?"

"Its true, isn't it? Any way, are you in or not?"

"Um, sure!" Kagome answered quickly. "But, why are you letting me help you so easily?"

"Well, don't look a gift horse in the mouth!" Ino chided. "I just want less time in the shop! You seem… responsible!"

"Oh yeah, let someone work in your family's shop who's from another village, doofus." Shikamaru droned.

"Hey! Its not like they're rude or smell bad or anything!"

"Is that how you perceive people to be good hearted?" Sango had to wonder.

"Look, do you want the job or not?"

"O-of course!" Kagome lowered her head. "Thank you for the opportunity."

"AND THANK YOU FOR THE MEAT!" Choji had finished all the plates. After their short meal, Kagome went with Ino to the flower shop and Sango went to get trained for the artillery store.

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 **To Be continued!**


	10. scroll 92: Stalker no Stalking!

**The short stories continue!**

 **Scroll 9.2: Stalker-San**

Ezi decided she would return to the ship, but she was intercepted by Sonic in the village.

"Hey, help me find Naruto." He had decided he would recruit her on his quest for the obnoxious child.

"No. I need to go train."

"Why? You're not still planning on..?"

"Fighting Sephiroth?" She looked at the ground. "I just want to get stronger anyway. That match against Aritob was way too close."

"It's more than what I had expected."

She looked at him. "Sorry I didn't tell you."

"You did what you had to do."

She nodded.

"I'll find Naruto. Later!" He winked and she watched the blue line vein down the road. He zoomed to the ramen shop Naruto had mentioned, but he wasn't there. The clerk was an aged man that said Naruto lived in one of the complexes nearby on his own. Some of his neighbors called out his place by stating the loud tenant was in one of the third floors of the circular apartment zone. He found it quite easily: the address number had been scratched off on the door, the door was unlocked, and there were milk cartons and glass bowls with shriveled pieces of noodles sprawled on the floor. Naruto was nowhere in sight.

He tapped his foot on the floor at an incredible pace, wrote something on a tiny wrinkled piece of paper, placed it on the table and then he dashed out.

As his search ran dreary, Ezi headed to the gates of the village. She turned around, expecting to see the blue blur had run out of luck searching for their friend, but it was another endearing form before her.

"Oh, hello again." She smiled.

"Hey, I didn't expect to see you in the village again." It was Kabuto.

She found it peculiar that he had found her again, his unusual desire to be there.

"I saw you and Sonic down the road. I just finished my shift at the medical clinic."

"How's your ear?"

"Oh, its alright. My hearing has returned bit by bit since then." He smiled. "Congratulations on the preliminaries."

"Thank you." She nodded. "Well, I'd better get going-"

"You find it strange, don't you?"

She grew stiff.

"That I found you again, right?"

"Well, I, uh-"

"I found it strange, too. I thought you had left the hidden leaf and I'd seen the last of you and your friends. When I saw you, I felt a little joy, so I just thought I'd say hi." He sauntered by her towards the opened gate. "I'm off to my hut on the outskirts. Maybe we'll see each other again sometime."

"Yeah, maybe so." She felt relieved. He hadn't enforced some long conversation upon either of them, and now she could get focused. She hopped through the thick, tall trees that resembled pine, until she found the watering hole Amy and Cream were cleaning dishes at.

She enhanced upon the tranquil sunlight rays cutting through the green trees, the cool crystal water that rushed through the woods, and the quiet nature upon their settlement. Then a black wing spanned over her head into her mind, and she thought of the dark enemy she had yet to face.

Cream screamed.

"Cream! Oh my god!" Amy tripped over the mud as she tried to reach for something in the air, and Ezi noticed Cream was gone.

"Cream?" Ezi scoured her eyes through the treetops, until she could see a tint of dark hopping away into the leaves. She sprang up and ran up the tree, following the dashing and wind that had been caused by the escaping kidnapper.

Her anxiety punctured her chest and rushed to her legs. She scanned all over and cried out to her rabbit friend, and she could hear her desperate, squeaky yelps for help in the distance. Her worry lengthened as the voice in dismay faded and echoed away.

She froze. Yoroi was standing above her in a tree branch with Cream crammed beside him under one arm.

"Let her go!"

"Sorry, no can do." The man in the dark glasses replied. "You will tell me your village's secrets, or you will forfeit her life."

"Secrets? I have nothing to say!"

"Maybe you will reconsider if you don't wish to find her body in a pit somewhere!" Yoroi turned and ran again.

"No!" She ran up and chased the trees. "Cream, Cream! Answer me!"

There was a moment of quiet, but she heard a man grunt, and the tussling of leaves and branches. She stepped into a clearing, and she found Cream hiding behind Kabuto Yakushi, whose back was facing her. Yoroi was scrambling away on the grass, kicking to get back up on his feet.

"Cream!" The bunny ran over to her and embraced her. Yoroi grumbled something and took off.

"Oh, are you okay?"

"Yes, I'm okay." She sounded calm. Ezi patted and stroked the top of her head, then she looked to Kabuto, who had helped them.

"Ezi!" Their friends from the ship raced in behind her.

"What the hell is he doing here?" Inuyasha snarled.

"He… he saved Cream." She managed to say, still concerned by his presence.

"He did what?" Rouge sounded shocked.

"Alright, I've heard enough." Inuyasha pulled out his sword in one swift motion and moved it into Kabuto's face. He stepped back with wide eyes. "You're coming with us!"

~….~

Everyone encircled him as they began to interrogate him in one of the blue rooms inside the Typhoon. Kabuto sat with his palms pressed on the sides of the metal chair like a child in time out.

"Inuyasha, do you think you should have brought him here?" Sango pressed.

"Of course! He already saw the ship. Now, start talking! How come you saved Cream?"

"Well, it makes sense, doesn't it? Why would I let some rogue ninja harm a potential member of a new allied nation?"

"Rogue? Wasn't he your team mate in the exams?" Shadow sounded as if he were outraged for some reason.  
"Ah, I'm sure you all noticed I am a medical ninja. I don't work with a team usually. Every year I've tried the exams I've worked with different teammates. I had barely worked with Yoroi before the exams. He just recently went rogue, but I didn't realize it until now."

"Why is that?"

"A man in purple attacked Sasuke Uchiha while he was still bedridden during the preliminaries. It was just a rumor, but the ninja went rogue. I guess it was Yoroi after all. He must have wanted your secrets for some other village."

"How did you know to be there in time to save Cream?" Shadow folded his arms. It was a brilliant question, and everyone turned to Kabuto for an answer.

He sighed, a nauseous look on his features. "I was… following Ezi."

"What?" She rang out.

"Gees, stalker much?" Amy added.

"No, it wasn't like that. I admit I found you all likable when we first met. But, then I saw you all again in the village today. It was too much of a coincidence to me. Before I am a medical ninja, I am devoted to the Hidden Leaf, so when I saw you again I decided to follow you. I saw the ship, but then my instincts kicked in when I saw Yoroi abduct your little friend."

"That sounds very logical…" Shippo said, but sounding suspicious.

"Kakashi said something like when he followed us too." Tails added.

"Well, I don't know what else to say to convince you I'm on your side here…" He chuckled lightly and rubbed the back of his head.

"Huddle!" Amy declared. Everyone swiveled to the other end of the small room and hushed in a small circle.

"What should we do? We can't risk him telling anyone about our ship!"

"We could always put the reflective barrier up, but that takes a lot of energy." Tails squinted his eyes for an idea.

"He doesn't have to know that, though! If he tells the village, we can keep a lookout and make sure no one sees it with the shield!"

Kabuto cleared his throat, and everyone stood up straight to turn and see him.

"I don't know what you're hiding, but if you're still discussing it, it must mean you don't want to have to hurt me."

"We're just figuring out what's more convenient for us." Shadow answered.

"To be honest, I don't really even know what this place is. Who am I supposed to tell, and what about?"

There was a pause, then Rouge spoke: "Well, we might as well tell him the details since the dog demon decided to drag him here in first place."

"Tell me what?" He shifted his dark eyes between them. "Who are you all?"

"We're monster slayers, and heroes, and travelers from other worlds." Ezi answered.

"Other, worlds?"

"Yeah buddy." Sonic answered. "If you hadn't notice, we're not all that normal looking. I mean, talking animals? Giant spaceship?"

"Is that what this large vessel is? We have technology, but never have I seen anything this complex."

"It's a 7 powered engine highly operable space ship: Code name Blue Typhoon." Tails said proudly.

"This giant thing is a spaceship?"

"Believe what you want." Ezi shrugged. "But, there's a reason we're hesitant to let you go. The truth is we need some time before we can fly back to our world. So, we pretended to be a village. It was a lot easier than explaining we were from another planet entirely."

"Yeah, we have no beef with your village or anyone here, really." Sonic added.

"You all just want to return to your world, then?" Kabuto pushed his glasses up. "Eh, it is a bizarre truth, but you're right: There's no one like you and your friends around here, Sonic. And, if Kakashi hasn't said anything, that means he trusts you all."

"So, now what do we do?" Inuyasha asked aloud.

"What can I do to make you believe I won't alert the authorities of your peculiar… predicament?"

"What reason do we have to believe you'll keep our little secret? Like Kakashi?" Shadow awaited for a perfect response.

Kabuto sighed. He rubbed his eyes underneath his glasses and decided to speak.

"I really do like you guys. It's not just because you saved our village. I began to find my life boring, and even sought escape, even though the work I do in the medical unit is essential. I didn't appreciate it as much until you all came along. When the demon attacked, I thought my boring life was over. To see you spring into action and protect something I didn't realize was so important, my peaceful village; it knocked some sense into me."

"Oh, you're welcome?" Ezi replied.

"This is a waste of my time." Sonic had his arms behind his head as he swayed left and right smoothly. "Let him go."

"Are you crazy?" Knuckles snapped.

"Look, he wanted to help us before the exams, he helped my team win the second exam, and he saved Cream's life. If he wanted to harm us or our plan of getting home, he'd have done it by now."

"You have a point, Sonic." Tails said. "If he wanted to alert his village, he would have taken off instead of try to help Cream."

"That doesn't mean anything." Shadow insisted.

"It means everything." Sonic retorted. "Look, Kabuto's just a helping hand. We don't need to be paranoid. Besides, we have precautions that will work if he tries to tell anyone."

Ezi smiled. Sonic was saying this in front of Kabuto, even though they did not have any precautions really.

"I say, we let him loose. Do any of us really want to take care of a prisoner on board while we're stuck here for a month anyway?"

No one said anything.

Kabuto stood quickly and clapped his hands together. "Then, you all trust me? Thank you."

"Don't be too happy just yet." Shadow said.

"Well, can I at least be relieved? And, if you needed any information that may help in you returning to your home, I'd be happy to help. I actually have a small medical hut outside of the village, so you guys can come by anytime if you need help."

It was decided and Kabuto went about his business. Everyone had continued their plans for the day in hopes he would keep his word. The day went by and another moment of turmoil was being set into motion for the Village Hidden in the Sun.

.

.

.

Naruto was exhausted from his training that day with Jariyah. His house was dark when he returned home that night, thinking of the training he would be faced with tomorrow. When he switched the light on, his house was quiet, and miserably dirty. He thought about eating cup noodles and milk when noticed a strip of paper written in blue pen on his table covered in trash.

There was a goofy face of a blue hedgehog smiling, and it read "Sonic was here".

Naruto smiled, matching the picture. He would have to train the little blue rat before the finals.

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.

.

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To Be Continued!


	11. scroll 93: Me and My Shadow Possession!

**Scroll 9.3: Me and My Shadow Possession!**

Another afternoon went by, and there was no sign of Kabuto, or any indication that he may have spoken to anyone of their secrets. Kagome invited the others to the training grounds when Ino insisted upon going. Since Sonic had no fortune in finding Naruto, and Ezi and Sora wanted to train, the three of them went to the grounds in the village. It was a vast circular plane with training stumps in rows of three in separate areas, and the field was covered in grass with a track of dirt circling them.

Ino was chatting with Amy and Sakura as soon as they had reached the grounds. Shikamaru and Choji were training on their own on one end of the field, while Sonic and his companions resided on the other.

"How many laps have you run?" Sora was casting Firaga on a stump for target practice.

Sonic returned beside him after 3 more laps. "700."

"The point is to get faster."

Ezi was running and flipping across the stumps before her, leaping off of them then aiming magic at their tops.

"I am! I think I am." He ran some more. Ezi sighed as she watched him.

"Hey, Sora. Do you think I could fight against you?"

"Why is that?"

"I need to get stronger."

"We all do, but what's your reason?"

"I need to. What if I have to fight Sephiroth?"

"Ezi, there's no way we're gonna let that happen! I didn't even defeat him in the Platinum match in the Coliseum, and he almost killed me!"

"My sensei taught me that if I have time to make a choice, it'd be better to be safe than sorry."

"But you don't have time. We've only got less than a month. Even if you fought with me or even Cloud when he recovers, Sephiroth is way too powerful."

"Hey."

Sora and Ezi turned to Shikamaru.

"I wanna train against one of you guys."

"Shikamaru, what are you babbling about?" Ino and Choji approached as well.

"I mean, I wanna train for my match. Hey," he looked to Sora, "you can use that wind jutsu, right?"

"Uh, you mean my Aero? Sure."

"That's perfect. Both of my opponents will be using force of some kind. So, what do yah say?"

"Don't pick a fight with them, idiot!" Ino protested.

"Don't be a pain. Its training, so you can say no if you want. I'm just taking advantage of you being here."

"Huh, he has a point." Sora admitted.

Sonic jumped in the air. "Then toast his buns!"

"What?" Sora was baffled.

"Alright, let's get this over with. Its necessary, but what a pain."

Everyone stood on the track to watch. Sora and Shikamaru stood apart from each other from either side of the width of the field, and they started after a few tiny stretches here and there.

"Alright, let's do this." Shikamaru crouched down on his toes.

"Okay." Sora recalled his jutsu that could stretch his shadow and control his enemies, and Nara recollected the amount of magic Sora could use. He squinted his eyes when Sora cast Aero around him, the windy shield. He threw a kunai and Sora rolled in the opposite direction and tried to charge at him.

"Shadow Possession Jutsu!" With Shikamaru's fingers twisted together, his shadow sprang forth; Sora reverted back and zoomed in a sideways running direction in a circle around him, but Shikamaru spun to face him as his shadow stretched around.

Sora smirked and stopped running. The shadow's point stopped at the end of Sora's shoes but writhed to reach his shadow, which it could not.

"You see, you used up your shadow." Sora said. "I realized your shadow grew smaller the farther it stretched, so that means it must stop at some point."

"Whoa, when did Sora get so observant?" Sonic said.

"Hey! I'll take that as a compliment!" He retorted.

Shikamru grimaced. The shadow stretched back around in the circle Sora had formed.

Sora stood up straight with confidence. "Now, if I were your opponent, I'd probably attack right now-" He meant to hold up his keyblade, but he couldn't move.

"You were saying?" The crowd of friends could see: Shikamaru had reverted his shadow back and stretched it to the stumps around the training field to expand its stretch, and now it had clung onto Sora's shadow from behind.

"Nice going, Shikamaru!" Ino cheered.

Sora's face was pale as he tried to revoke the spasms in his muscles. Shikamaru sauntered toward him and he did the same.

"Now, once I catch them, I need to figure out what to do…" Shikamaru pondered his possible strikes that would not afflict him. Then, Sora jumped off of his shadow quickly. Before Shikamaru could process how it was even possible, Sora's shadow sprung out of the earth with yellow orbs for eyes, and it punched him in the face and he flew back.

"Whoa!" Choji yelled.

"H-how did he do that?" Ino yelled. "Cheating!"

"No, he used anti-Sora. A dark part of him." Ezi explained. "It's an empty matter of him that appears when he's used too much magic."

"Sora told me," Sonic enlightened, "Cloud was helping him control it for battle."

Shikamaru saw Sora's gloved hand in his face. "Sorry, dude. You okay?"

He sighed. "What a pain." He took his hand to stand back up. "Well, I don't think either of my opponents will be able to do that."

"I don't think so either. But, I couldn't resist."

"I know. Still, thanks." Shikamaru rubbed his cheek. "Choji, let's get some lunch."

"YEAH! YOU TOOK THE WORDS RIGHT OUT OF MY MOUTH!"

Ino left with her team, and everyone else were about to go their business training, but then Inuyasha dropped down from a tree.

"Hey, I need to talk to you." He said it sternly to Kagome.

"We're sort of busy." She was aiming at a tree trunk with her bow and arrow.

"Come on, we haven't spoken in days! You can't ignore me forever, its not like you can just go down the well this time when you're mad at me."

She stomped her foot into the ground. "Can everyone go? We need space."

"Seriously?" Sonic answered first. "Why can't you guys go-" Amy grabbed his mouth aggressively, and he whimpered trying to escape but it was in vain.

"We're all leaving! It's lunch time anyway." Amy scurried the rest of them out of the training grounds. It was quiet amongst the nature of the chirping and the soft breeze about them on the regular day.

"Why are you so mad about it? I was a full demon, and I told you before not to try to go near me when I'm in that form!"

"Inuyasha." She said softly. "I was not mad about that."

"Then what's the big deal?"

She wiggled her lips and hesitated to speak. "When you were a full demon before the puppet Naraku, Kikyo was there. You did not attack her, in fact, she calmed you down."

"That doesn't mean anything."

"It does to me."

"Kagome," he waited in the slight wind for something to say that was brilliant, but lacked the capacity to alter their current status. Nothing came to mind.

"I'm heading to work. See you later."

Inuyasha grunted and babbled something, but nothing explicit enough to compel her back to him. He could smell the honey shampoo in her hair as the wind swept them into different trails about their day.

Kagome went to the flower shop with Ino, and the others ate at lunch. Sonic still couldn't find Naruto, and things were going normal…

until the darkness came.

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To be Continued!

Hi! I hope you're enjoying the mini-episodes so far. Reviews are welcomed!


	12. scroll 94: How Could you be so Heartless

**Scroll 9.3: How could You Be so Heartless**

That night, Sonic found Naruto, he was perched on a post above a hot springs taking his top off, to which Sonic assumed he was about to dive into the warm water.

He watched Naruto jump in by the fetal position and sink into the plant of water that sprouted in all directions, including onto himself. He wiggled the wet off of his fur and waited for the boy to see him, which didn't take long at all, thankfully.

"Hey! Sonic! What are you doing here?"

"I've been looking for yeah!"

"Me?"

"Who else would I want to have train me in the art of Ninjutsu?"

Naruto's eyes seemed to sparkle. "No way, really? Alright! Uh, but there's one slight problem…" Naruto folded his arms and tilted his head to an older man resting on the wooden fence behind them. He was giggling erratically and his long white spikey hair danced back and forth swayed in the drafty wind. He seemed to be peeking through a crack in the wood fence of the springs.

"I gotta deal with this hermit. He's my trainer for the exams and I can't lose focus!"

"Well, when you're not training, you think you could help me out a bit? I wouldn't want to tire you out, though…"

"No way I never get tired!" Naruto insisted. "I'll train you anytime, anywhere!"

"Great! See you tomorrow at the training grounds, then."

"What? Why wait then? LET'S DO IT NOW!"

"Uh…" Sonic looked over at the man, Naruto's supposed sensei for the time being, "are you sure?"

"Yeah! He's gonna be training me all day tomorrow, so we might as well do some stuff now you can practice yourself when I'm not there!"

"I thought you said you could train me anytime anywhere." Sonic teased.

"I meant about my energy level, get real! You'll see, I'm gonna train you to be the best hedgehog ninja ever, believe it!"

Sonic smirked, delighted. "Well, let's head to the training grounds, when you're ready, then."

It was getting dark out. All the foreigners from the Blue Typhoon had made their way back to the ship except Amy. She was returning from the shop with Kagome, and Ino and Sakura had walked with them all near the gate of the village. They had basically been gossiping as they walked around aimlessly, enjoying each other's company.

"…Anyway, my hair means nothing if I can't be a good shinobi, I guess." Ino was talking. "

"Yeah, yeah. You just cut it in the preliminaries to copy me." She was teasing, but Sakura Haruno had a quieter way about her since Sasuke had been in the hospital.

"I'm sure whoever ends up liking you won't mind!" Amy insisted. She had come to get Kagome and explore the village, which she hadn't done much yet, but ended up seeing Sakura, calling her her twin in human form. Still, it was Amy and Ino who had seemed to connect the most in their encounter.

"I know my man always saves me no matter how gunky I look, but he always gives me the cold shoulder."

"Oh… you mean that black hedgehog?" Sakura guessed.

"Shadow? No way! He's _way_ too cold. I'm talking about Sonic!"

"Sonic? I can't picture that hyper hog being mean." Ino thought aloud.

"He just ignores my feelings for him!" Amy said angrily, then her face rested to a soft frown as she mused ahead on the quiet, lantern-lit dirt path.

"I… I just want him to accept my feelings."

"I know how you feel." Kagome mumbled.

"What? You have guy problems too, Kagome?" Ino sounded interested. "What is it with men and drama? Why can't they just be decent? Well, at least they're easy to manipulate!"

Sakura was quiet, but as she looked dazed ahead, she was thinking about Sasuke. Even if he never loved her the same way, she was hopelessly in love too.

Then, a shadow danced up ahead.

"Huh?" She stopped walking. "What is that thing?"

"What is it, Sakura?" Amy tried to see up ahead, and suddenly they all gasped. A tiny black creature swiveled its round head in their direction, and they could see its yellow beady eyes looking at them.

"It… it can't be!" Amy gasped.

"Is that a demon?" Kagome wondered. She reached for her bow and arrow, but she hadn't taken it with her to work in the flower shop. "Damn!"

"W-w-what is that thing?" Ino and Sakura stared in confusion as more yellow eyes appeared in the darkness, pouring out into the lantern lights on the road.

They screamed out, enough for someone to hear, and then Amy whipped out her magical Piko-piko hammer.

"I'll take care of this!" She said with certainty. She wailed in proclamation as she swung her hammer through the oncoming Heartless. Thankfully it was just the small ones, so it was easy for her to swing and turn them into gook that vanished as she hammered through. But, more came, and an overwhelming amount surrounded them.

Sakura was shaking, but she yanked out a kunai. "C-come on, Ino!"

Ino nodded and took a stance with her kunai as well. Every Heartless that jumped at them they managed to swipe at.

"Hey!" Knuckles and Ezi jumped down from the trees higher up, and they crushed and punched and threw magic at the Heartless one at a time.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha appeared and swung his Tetsaiga out and sliced through hoards of them.

"Inuyasha!" She said happily.

"Hiraikotsu!" Sango's boomerang slashed through more of them.

Amy screamed. A giant wave of them crushed her, Kagome, Ino and Sakura!

"Oh no!" Knuckles said, trying to punch the heartless in his way to reach them.

"Kagome!" Inuyasha yelled. "Damn you annoying bugs; outta my way!"

"Aero!"

"Sonic wind!"

Sora charged through the Heartless, the wind knocking through them like a bowling ball into pins, and Sonic dashed in a blue incredible rate, taking more of them out. When the area was cleared there were only the Heartless left that had dog-piled the girls. Then, a white light broke through the pile and the Heartless were vanquished and vanished in seconds.

"Whoa, nice Kagome!" Ezi said. "Her heart must have purified the darkness around them, thank goodness."

The girls looked around in relief, expect Ino, who seemed to be passed out.

"Ino?" Sakura knelt down and shook her. "Ino!"

"No… the Heartless didn't take her heart, did they?" Ezi wondered.

Kagome placed her hand gently on Ino's chest. "I can still hear it beating. She just fainted it looks like."

"Oh, Sonic!" Amy jumped up and embraced him. "You saved me again!" He grumbled in embarrassment.

"What happened?" Sora and Cloud appeared.

"Oh, _now_ the keyblade bearer shows up." Knuckles said sarcastically. "Where the heck have you been?"

"There were more on the road here." Cloud explained. "Rouge and Shadow helped us fight them and we cleared them from our ship."

"Great, so there's Heartless here too?" Sonic carped.

"…HEY."

Everyone turned to Naruto, who they had not seen until just then.

"WHAT THE HECK ARE YOU ALL TALKING ABOUT, BELIEVE IT?"

"N-Naruto? What are you doing here?" Ezi said shocked. "Uh, i-it's nothing, really—"

"Ezi, the jig is up." Sonic shrugged. "We have two witnesses, now."

"Witnesses?" Naruto echoed. Kagome stepped back when he suddenly appeared beside Sakura and Ino, holding a kunai out towards everyone else at his chest.

"You better think twice about harming either one of us!"

"Naruto?" Sakura seemed surprised he was trying to protect her.

"Don't be an idiot." Sonic said annoyed. "If we wanted to hurt you we had plenty of opportunity before. We're not gonna hurt you, you guys are our friends."

"Huh?" He lowered his kunai in confusion. "Then, you better tell me what's going on!"

The group exchanged looks.

"Welp," Ezi spoke first, "unless someone has an amnesia gun, we'd better fess up."

~…~

"…So those things are called Heartless?"

"That's our name for them, yes."

"And they travel to other planets to destroy them?"

"Pretty much."

"And you guys… what? Travel other planets too to like, defeat monsters like those?"

"Before they can turn the worlds into darkness, yes."

Naruto rubbed his chin. "That makes you guys like, aliens or something!"

"Wow, it took you this long to get it? They've only been explaining forever, Naruto." Sakura said dully.

Someone had taken Ino home while they slept, and Sakura promised to chalk it all up to her as a dream she had when they had been attacked by the heartless; but basically, they were on the Blue Typhoon, and Sonic and the others were having to explain once again that they were not from this ninja world.

"This is so cool! I knew there was something awesome about you I liked!" Naruto declared, patting Sonic on the shoulder.

"So, you guys aren't scared of us?" Amy asked worriedly.

"Are you kidding? I have alien friends now! BELIEVE IT!"

"It's a lot to take in, but its not too alarming." Sakura admitted. "So then, you guys just need to finish the third exams so you can return home, right?"

"Yeah, but right now we need to worry about those Heartless." Cloud said steadily. "They engulf worlds in darkness, but we won't let that happen here."

Sora grumbled. "It may be my fault. I'm from another galaxy, where the Heartless originated from, and they come after me because of my keyblade."

"Sora, don't beat yourself up." Shippo said.

"Yeah! If anything, your this planet's only hope!" Said Goofy.

"But, the only other planet they ever went on outside of my galaxy was planet earth, and I have been there too! They are following me, I know it."

"We don't know that for sure." Ezi pressed. "Right now, we need to find the keyhole to this world. It could be somewhere in the Hidden Leaf Village, since that is where the Heartless are appearing."

"We'll help!" Naruto said. "I'm not gonna be scared off by some shadow creatures who think they take out my village!"

"That's the spirit!" Sonic hi-fived him.

"Hmph, that village is large enough. The keyhole could be anywhere." Shadow said negatively.

"Okay mister frowny; you're gonna help them find it!" Rouge replied.

"No. Tomorrow I have to go somewhere."

"Huh? What could be more important then this?"

He thought about Kabuto, and how much he didn't like him.

"I'll just be taking care of something first, then I'll help."

"Great! Then we'll all work together to find the keyhole as soon as possible!" Sora declared.

For Sonic, there was actual relief that he didn't have to lie to Naruto anymore, and the team rested that night to prepare for their hunt the next day to save the land of the ninja.

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED


	13. scroll 95: Sasuke vs Shadow

**Scroll 9.5: Sasuke VS Shadow**

Sora walked to the Gummi ship alone. He felt guilty, thinking that he might be responsible for the Heartless appearing in Konoha. But, more importantly, he wished the ship would fly so he could continue his search for Riku.

Shadow hopped over the ship, using the branches as support as he hopped through the verdant woods.

"Hey, Shadow! Wanna train real quick? I gotta get ready to search for the keyhole today."

He shook his head, and continued onward to his destination; he had followed Kakashi Hatake the other day to the mountains, where he was training someone who could assist him.

He hopped and flipped over boulders on the incline to the mountaintop. The stones were a cool pale color and the air was thin on that blue morning, and he felt urgency when he could see the boy and his teacher on a flat surface near the top. They were standing apart, face-to-face from one another.

Sasuke was panting, and he gripped his right wrist like it were in pain. There were two large holes in the boulder beside them.

"You?" Kakashi turned to face Shadow as he approached them. "I noticed you the other day, but you didn't follow me today… did you get up here that quickly?"

"I came to talk to Sasuke." Shadow addressed. "I just have a question for him, then you can go back to your training."

Sasuke paused, analyzing Shadow for a bit as he calmed his breathing with his red, Sharingan eyes. There was tension, even if it didn't need to be there on that clear day.

"Fight me." Sasuke said.

"You're too weak." Kakashi warned.

"Sensei, if I can't even defeat this guy, how do you expect me to do well in the exams?" He turned back to Shadow. "Fight me, and I'll answer your question.

"Hmph, very well." Shadow stretched his legs and lowered his stance. An atmospheric mist brushed between them, and when it cleared, Sasuke was gone.

Shadow jumped to the right, avoiding a kick from Sasuke before it could land, then he raised his arm towards him.

"Chaos Spear!" About three yellow arrows dispersed from his hand, darting at Sasuke. Sasuke lunged back, only receiving a small slice in his ankle from the attack that barely cut through his leg brace.

When they both landed, they charged at one another. Kakashi watched intently and followed Shadow with his left red eye. They punched and kicked and blocked each other's quick throws, snarling and grunting aggressively at one another as their swings slowed down in pace. They both jumped back to catch their breath.

"You're not half bad… for a human."

"Hmph, I'm just getting started." Sasuke raised his right arm and bent his fingers in, holding his arm with his other hand.

"Sasuke! Don't do _that_ move just yet." Kakashi scolded. "I've already told you what will happen if you try it a third time."

Shadow wondered what it had meant, but he attacked again, using Chaos Control this time using his favored, green chaos emerald. In a spur of white light, Shadow was gone, then he was in the air behind Sasuke's ear, whacking his heavy shoe into the side of his head. Sasuke rolled and scrambled back up, feeling irritated pain and blood leak from his ear.

He ran for Shadow again, throwing a kunai first that Shadow ducked to dodge, and Sasuke attempted to wham his knee into his crouched position. Shadow caught the front of his knee, grunting as they made contact, and flung up into the air. Sasuke kicked his whole leg out, and Shadow was forced to let go as he flung into the air in a diagonal direction.

He blocked his face with his hands, seeing Sasuke sprang forward at him, but he was gone in a flash- Shadow's own red eyes widened, feeling the Sharingan on his back.

"You're mine!" Sasuke punched or kicked—Shadow couldn't see—him into the air, straight upward. Then, he whacked him again on the side with his leg. Sasuke twirled his body around in the air and punched Shadow clean in the chest, and he made a grunt as he went back downwards, seeing Sasuke block the sun as he fell. Sasuke dove down, and Shadow recognized move: the Lion's Barrage. Sasuke had a wide grin as he was ready to slam Shadow into the earth with his foot, a well adjusted taijutsu move he had created in the preliminaries.

Sasuke's foot slammed into the ground, cracking stone and soil underneath it, but Shadow was gone.

"What?" Sasuke was fast enough to block Shadow's oncoming punch from behind, but Shadow's other hand gently tapped Sasuke's back shoulder.

"Chaos-!" Shadow stopped. Instead of using his spear, he swung his arm up and whacked Sasuke hard in the back of the head, and Sasuke fell forwards and rolled into the dirt.

When the dust cleared, Sasuke was still on the ground, lying on his belly. His palms were pressed against the earth to stand, but he could not.

"Had I used that move from behind, it would have killed you." Shadow explained. "Which, I did not come here to do."

Kakashi said nothing as he observed disapprovingly.

"Damn it!" Sasuke groaned and growled in frustration. "How did you escape my attack?"

"I have my ways. Like I said before, you're pretty fast for a human, but I'm faster."

Sasuke stood up. He wiped the blood off the side of his ear and dusted his pants off.

"What are you?"

"I'm the ultimate life form, Shadow. You cannot defeat me, though you may try."

"I will defeat you… someday." Sasuke replied. "For now, I'll answer your question."

"Did a ninja in purple attack you while you were in the hospital?"

"What? No."

Shadow lowered his head in thought. "I knew it."

"Actually, someone did attack him." Both opponents turned to Kakashi.

"What?" Sasuke seemed baffled.

"Sasuke was recovering so he did not see, but a ninja from our village gone rogue did attack him. What business is that of yours?"

"Hmph. So he was telling the truth…" Shadow was more annoyed with the news then he had hoped. Kabuto's story he told he others was accurate, then.

"Kakashi, why didn't you tell me this before?" Sasuke sounded offended.

"What would you have done? Been distracted, probably. That ninja left, so there's nothing you can do about it now, Sasuke."

Shadow had the information he needed so he began to walk away.

"Aw, don't want to hangout anymore?" Kakashi said, mockingly.

"I got what I needed."

"I'll be looking forward to when we face each other again." Sasuke called out.

"Don't count on it." Shadow was thinking that by then they would have returned to Mobius. Still, there was a familiar feeling about Sasuke, one that reminded him of himself.

Perhaps, they would battle again. In another world.

.

.

.

To Be Continued!


	14. scroll 96: Know They Enemy

**Scroll 9.6 Know Thy Enemy**

There were maybe more than two more weeks left until the exams started again. Sora had no luck finding the keyhole, and neither did the others, but there had only been a few Heartless that appeared after the first attack.

Kabuto Yakushi appeared in a white puff of smoke, beside Ezi and Sakura, who were observing Sonic's training.

"Hey." He waved.

"Yakushi-san!" Sakura exclaimed.

"Oh, you know him?" Ezi noticed.

"Sorry, guys. I couldn't find any keyhole you were looking for."

"It's okay. Sora may be the only one who can with his keyblade."

"Hedgehogs and keyblades? You're all very interesting." Kabuto pushed his glasses into place.

Sonic shook his fingers as he stared down his opponent. There was hardly any wind in the forest, but anyone watching may have received chills form watching with anticipation.

"Doppelganger no Jutsu!" Sonic raised both hands up and made a cross symbol with his index and middle finger from each hand. A puff of smoke surrounded him, and when it cleared, Sonic had his clone.

Naruto, his opponent, began to laugh. "You call _that_ a shadow clone?" He was hysterical.

"I don't know why you're being so rude, Naruto!" Sakura snapped. "Your shadow clones were much worse when you started!"

The chibi shadow clone vanished as Sonic shrugged. "Oh well, guess ninja moves aren't my thing."

"Okay, we're done training today it's getting late." Naruto wiped the tear from his eye from laughing so hard.

"Sounds good. I could go for some grub."

"How about Ichiraku ramen?" Naruto exclaimed. "That place is the best!"

"Naruto, not everybody loves Ichiraku the way you do." Sakura chided. "You should ask our guests what they want to eat first, baka!"

"Hey, I trained the little guy, I should get to choose where we eat!"

"Ramen? That sounds delightful!" Amy exclaimed. "Sonic, let's go eat there together!"

"Ramen does sound pretty good, actually." He snickered. "Though I'd prefer chili dogs, this'll do for now."

"Actually, I'll just eat on the ship." Ezi said sitting up. "I ate there before the exams and it didn't agree with my stomach all too well…"

"What? No Ezi, come with us!" Ino insisted.

"Ino, we're not going. We're gonna train ourselves, remember?" Sakura reminded.

"Huh? Oh, well I guess so…"

"Aww, Sakura-chan, I wanted to go out on a date with you though!" Naruto whined.

"In your dreams, baka! Let's go Ino." Sakura dragged her friend towards the training grounds.

"Aw man, well let's go guys." Naruto grumbled, suddenly not as happy to go eat.

"Heh, tough luck, Naruto. But you know you shouldn't worry so much about her right now, you need to get focused on your fight with Neji." Kabuto reminded.

"Yeah yeah… we still have two and a half months! But you're right; I shouldn't be wasting time training this porcupine thing."

"Very funny, inmate." Sonic retorted. Sonic liked calling Naruto that because of his bright orange jump suit.

"Are you sure you don't want to come with us, Ezi? We could get you something someplace else!" Amy said.

"No thanks, I'll wait for Sora, Knuckles and Inuyasha's gang to come back. I might not even eat I'm not that hungry, but you guys have fun." I headed towards the ship.

"Ezi," Kabuto chased after me, "may I stay and eat here with you? Ramen is my least favorite food…"

For some reason, anxiety punctured her chest. "Oh, well…"

Amy smirked. "That's perfect! You two dine, alone… together!" She began to push Sonic and Naruto away. "We'll just leave you two alone, don't mind us!"

"Huh? But Amy-!"

"No 'buts', Ezi! We don't care at all if you don't want to join us, right guys?"

Sonic had an idea of what Amy was up to, but Naruto was completely out of the loop.

"Uh, I guess so…" Sonic shrugged.

"Huh? Yeah, whatever, let's just go eat already!" Naruto snapped, then they were on their way.

"Oh, but-!" Ezi tried again. Amy had already thrown the others down the trail though and they were gone. _That Amy…_ she thought _. She's plotting a romance._

"Shall we go inside, Ezi-chan?" Kabuto placed his hand gently on her shoulder.

"Um, sure." She blushed. _Damn it! How old is this guy, anyway? He must be years older than me, or at least he definitely looks it…_

Once inside, they headed into the lounge. It was clean white space with a plastic red couch and blue tables for people to eat at. There was a view into the small kitchen spot and entranceway where the stove and refrigerator were.

"What would you like to eat? We have pizza, fruit, salad, chicken, sushi, cup noodles…"

"What are you going to eat?"

"Actually, I was going to just drink some coffee."

"That sounds good, I'll have some coffee then too, please."

"Sure thing." She started brewing in the kitchen, away from the lounge room where Kabuto was sitting. She decided to wait for the coffee to be made there, but when she turned to the entranceway from the lounge, she saw him standing there. He was leaning against the frame with his arms folded, smiling kindly at her.

She smiled back. "You don't have to wait on me, you must be tired from all your helping us out today. You can sit in the lounge, if you want."

"I'd much rather spend my free time with good company." He insisted.

"Oh, r-right. Um, so I have a question; how long have you known team 7?"

"Since the exams, about as long as I've known you."

"Oh, they're pretty cool, aren't they? Except for maybe that Sasuke guy."

Kabuto walked over to her. "What you don't like him? I'm surprised. Every girl falls head over hills for Sasuke Uchiha."

"Maybe I'm just not at that phase yet, but I seriously hate his guts! He's so arrogant, and such a jerk, I don't get why Sakura likes him."

He laughed. "You must not care about what people look like, just their personalities then, right?"

"Right! You should never judge a book by its cover." She smiled. "Kinda like you, Kabuto."

"Hey, what does that mean?"

Ezi turned back to the coffee. It was almost done. "Well, I don't mean you're ugly or anything like that, in fact, you're very good looking-" Her eyes widened. She looked back at him with terror on her features at what she had just said. "I mean, not that I care, I mean, I do, I just, _ohhh_ …sorry, I shouldn't have said something like that."

He snickered. "Why not? You should be able to say what's in your heart, don't you agree?"

"Yeah, but… sorry. Anyway, what I meant by that is that when I first saw you, you seemed, I don't know, menacing. But I guess that's just what I assume from everyone I meet. But now that I know you better, I can see you're really a nice person."

He smiled. "Well thank you, Ezi-chan… I try to be a nice guy."

"But you are!" She pressed. "You helped us in the exams, and you're keeping our secret for us! I know it sounds silly, but… it means a lot that there's people in this world we can trust."

He tilted his head. "That doesn't sound silly."

"It's just, every other world we go to there's always some kind of enemy or jerk who's trying to hurt us. I just want my friends to be safe, that's all."

"You're friends mean a lot to you, don't they?"

"They're my family; of course they do."

 _BING!_

"Oh, the coffee's ready." I grabbed two mugs from the cupboard above me.

"You don't have any parents?" Kabuto asked me.

She twitched. "No. I mean, I have a foster mother, Monica, take care of me, but I don't know what happened to my real parents or where any of my other relatives are."

"I see."

"Oh sorry, what did you want in your coffee?"

"Nothing, thanks, I like it bitter."

"Alright." She handed him his cup and he thanked her, then she put some cream and two lumps of sugar in her own. They walked silently to the couch.

"You know, I don't know who my real parents are either."

"Really?"

"Yeah. They found me after what we called the Kikyo Palace wars, and I had lost my memory. I've been living with a medical ninja in the village ever since."

Ezi paused. "Doesn't it… make you angry? Like maybe somebody out there knows what happened, but the universe is such a big place, you may never find out those answers out."

He looked over at her with a sober glance. "Yes. That's exactly how I feel."

She paused again. "But at the same time, if you could find out and sacrifice who you are today to find the truth, would you want to do it? I know I think about it sometimes, it comes out from the back of my mind, but I'm happy about the person that I am. I love my friends, and all the things I've done with them."

Kabuto was still staring at me. "You're very mature for your age, Ezi-chan. I didn't think about that until I was at least 18."

"18?" I said sadly. So he was older than 18, huh…

"Yeah. I'm proud to be a healer in Konoha. I get to help people out, and help advance in medical Ninjutsu through science and experiments. I don't think I would have this job if I knew who my former self was, whoever that is."

He said it so sullenly. "You're you, I guess. Nobody else can define who are except you. You don't need to know who you were before that to be great."

He smiled. "I appreciate your words, Ezi-chan."

She smiled back. "Good!"

"And what about you, Ezi-chan? Are you happy with yourself?"

"Yes sir!" She said proudly. "I'm gonna be a great warrior, so I can protect my friends!"

"Excellent. I'm glad to hear it. You'll make a fine fighter, Ezi-chan, you're so good already."

"Really? Nah, I just try to hard that's all."

"No I'm serious, there are people who say a lot of things but then can't do it, like Naruto for example."

She frowned. "You don't think Naruto is good?"

"He's an okay fighter, but he's trying to be a ninja, and he's just not cut for it, I don't think."

"Oh…" She was slightly flabbergasted by the harsh criticism.

"But you, Ezi-chan, you could become a kunoichi if you wanted to be."

"Thanks, but I'll leave the justsus and kunais to you ninja folk. Being a ninja isn't really what I'm striving for."

"But you're so talented," he insisted, "if you ever want any advice or knowledge about Ninjutsu, you just let me know."

"Okay, thanks I will."

"So if being a ninja isn't what you strive for, then what?"

"Well, my sensei is training me to be a… something else! It's taken a long time, but I'm glad with the outcome so far."

"You ought to be. Your performance with all those elements in the preliminaries was impressive. Most shinobi can use one or two elements, but you had a whole plethora of them at your disposal."

"Thanks…"

"What about Sonic? I'm sure his speed has something to do with how unique he is too."

"Well, Sonic is from Mobius. He and the other animals you've met our from that planet too."

"And you're from there as well?"

"No, I'm from a planet called Earth. My friends that aren't animals are also from different worlds."

"But you don't look that different from me," He noticed.

"Ha, what'd you expect, me to have green skin? I'm human, like, you, I'm just not from around here."

"There really are a lot of other worlds out there? I've always wondered, but I never believed it…"

"It's just how we roll…"

"My goodness, that's a lot of information," He scratched his head, "You have some unique friends, Ezi-chan."

"Thanks."

"You're pretty unique yourself, I think that's why I like you so much."

She looked at him, but he was staring at his drink as if he had said something normal.

"We're baaaaack suckas!" Sora's voice was heard from the entrance of the ship. "We come bearing gifts of food and more food!"

They both stood from the couch and watched everyone walk in.

"Hey guys." Ezi said, feeling like a kid with her hand caught in the cookie jar for some reason.

"Oh," Kagome smirked, "I hope we're not interrupting anything." Sango was chuckling beside her.

"Not at all," Ezi said professionally, "you guys remember Kabuto, right?"

"Yeah, what's up Kabuto?" Sora spoke first. "You wanna come eat with us?"

"No thanks, I should probably get going now that it's late." He turned to her. "Thanks for the coffee, Ezi-chan."

"N-no problem." She was caught off guard when he wrapped his arms around me and gently pressed her into his chest.

"Thanks for letting me share some personal things with you today." He said quietly.

"Oh, thank you then, too." She hugged him back. "I feel like I said more than you did."

He let her loose and looked into her eyes. "Then we'll have to talk again soon sometime."

"S-sure, sounds like a plan."

He nodded and turned to leave. "Nice seeing you all again." He waved to them before heading out.

"Bu-bye Kabuto!" Shippo called out. The group waved back, then he was gone. When the door shut behind him, everyone's eyes were pinned back on Ezi.

"WHAT?"

"What was that, Ezi? How come you were here alone with Kabuto, huuuuh?" Kagome teased.

"Oh please, he's just a friend, Kagome, and we were just eating coffee!"

"I've never heard of _eating_ coffee before." Rouge snickered. "Is that a new way people flirt?"

" _Drink._ You know what I mean!" She snapped.

"He seems to like you, Ezi." Sango observed. "Why else would he want to spend time with you?"

"To… be friendly?"

"With just you?" She pressed.

"Don't strain your brains too much on it!" She cackled, wildly and unusually loud. "Okay, let's go find that keyhole!"

Sora raised his sack of food in the air. "Wait, we gotta eat first!"

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.

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To Be Continued!


	15. scroll 97: the scar

**9.7: The Scar**

Iruka sensei had been Naruto's teacher for a long time. Since Naruto was Kakashi's student now, it was not appropriate him for him to dawdle on anything related to Naruto. In fact, Naruto was being trained by one of the sages now, Jariyah. Still, Iruka did not trust the sun village since their appearance, and he took the initiative to follow Naruto and some of the sun ninja one evening.

"Man, that ramen was good!" Naruto said to Sonic.

"Thanks for the meal, by the way."

"Of course! My best student has to get his energy to keep training hard!"

Sonic chuckled. "You know, if we both win our matches, there's a chance we will fight each other in the final rounds. Won't that be something?"

"Huh?" Naruto hadn't thought much about it until that point. "Yeah! It'll be totally awesome!"

As Iruka watched, he did not enjoy the idea of Naruto being tricked by this other village, who was befriending him, the bearer of a fox demon, for some reason. He continued to follow them deep into the forest, to wherever they planned to go next, but their plans went array.

"Heartless!" Sonic exclaimed.

"Oh man, not these freaks again!" Naruto pulled out a kunai. They were surrounded by tiny shadow and flying heartless in seconds.

"Naruto!" Iruka jumped from the trees and joined them.

"Iruka-sensei? What are you doing here?"

"Trying to keep you safe! Stay close!"

"Sonic!" Inuyasha, Kagome, Sango and Tails appeared from within the trees, joining in on the fight. They all used their knives and weapons and agility to take each Heartless out. Sango whipped her boomerang into few of them, and Shippo used his foxfire. Kirara ripped through some of them, and Kagome shot her arrow into many while Inuyasha sliced through a few more.

"Nice work!" Tails said, scanning the area. "I think that's all of them."

"You, stay back!" Iruka stepped in front of Naruto, holding a kunai out towards everyone else threateningly.

"Sensei, what the heck are yah doing?" Naruto demanded.

"Sorry, I don't trust the likes of them!"

"Take it easy, shinobi." Inuyasha said, irritated.

"Why are you all coming in and out of our village, huh? What is it that you're after?"

"Nothing, man! We're on your side—" Sonic tried to explain.

"Stay back!"

Sora and Ezi came running to the commotion. "What's going on?"

"Sensei, you got it all wrong—"

"Naruto, they are demon slayers. You shouldn't think you can trust them!"

"Wait, you're talking about the nine tails in Naruto, aren't you?" Kagome said.

"So you do know about it!" Iruka retorted. "Forgive me if I don't believe for a second that demon slayers wouldn't be trying to slay the demon inside of Naruto! That's what you're really after, isn't it?"

Ezi saw a rustle in the trees, east of Naruto and Iruka. Two poison plant Heartless stretched out from the earth, with salmon pink petals and swaying yellow eyes.

"Oh no!" She quickly threw her sword at one, but the other one managed to spew a venomous spore outward.

"Iruka, Naruto, look out!" There wasn't any time. Ezi raised to block them, and her back was impaled by the sharp spore. It bore into her skin and spread its poison. She made a cry of pain and fell to her knees.

"Ezi!" Naruto ran to her.

"She saved us…" Iruka was shocked. Sango leapt out and sliced through the plant and it disappeared.

"Hey, stay with us!" Inuyasha held her in his arms. "Damn, the dart was poison.

"I'm all out of potions, I can't give her anything to heal it!" Sora detailed.

"Then, what do we do?" Sonic asked.

"I know, follow me!" Sango led Inuyasha and the rest of them to a familiar hut in the woods. It was small so Inuyasha and Sonic hurried in while the others waited outside.

"What's going on?" Kabuto appeared from the shadows, turning on a candle in his small sitting space. Inuyasha placed Ezi on the bar counter he had near the kitchen and stove.

"Hey, we need your medical skills!" He flipped her over onto her stomach, and she groaned in pain. "Heal her up!"

"Okay, well can someone tell me what happened first?"

"A monster shot her with his poison dart! Fix it!" Inuyasha demanded, giving as little information as possible.

"I may have something for this…" Kabuto stammered, adjusting his glasses to observe the wound. "Don't worry, she'll be okay." He skillfully cut through the back of her shirt, ripping it off her shoulder and off the wound so he could get a closer look. His hands glowed a gentle green and he went to work. Ezi's groans softened as the black ooze seeped from the wound into a ball out of her skin. Kabuto was masterful in his craft, and as he drained the wound he looked across her back at the long ugly scar that rested diagonally across her entire back.

Outside, Sonic emerged.

"Kabuto says she's gonna be okay. He's working on her right now."

"Thank goodness." Tails said with relief.

Iruka felt ashamed. He suddenly bent forward from his waist towards them.

"Sensei?"

"I'm sorry… I hope she will be alright."

"You were acting kind of crazy back there." Sonic pointed out.

Iruka stood up straight again, with some sort of glisten in his eyes. "I am protective of my village. You must understand I had to know what your true intentions were."

"They're not to harm Naruto, or anyone else." Kagome said calmly. "You must care about him a lot to feel this protective of him."

Iruka gasped, slightly with relief. "I know you're growing up, Naruto, and I'm proud of you. I'm sorry, I should have trusted your judgment on them."

"Yeah, dude! We're not all human, some of us our part demon too! Yeah we hunt demons, but Naruto is our friend above anything else!" Sonic explained.

"Aw, thanks Sonic!" Naruto laughed.

"Even if he were to go berserk or something, we wouldn't try to hurt him." Kagome added. "In fact, things like that have happened with our friend Inuyasha."

"No way? I guess I'm doing better with my demons than he is, then!" Naruto rubbed under his nose, laughing triumphantly.

"What are you talking about, dork?" Sonic teased. "You saw him transform in the preliminaries!"

"Oh yeah! I forgot!"

Iruka could see had made a mistake. Maybe these were some of the best people Naruto could have made allies with. He would have to learn he could not be there for him forever, even though Kakashi told him this during the exams, and he was already in this mind sight; it was easier said than done.

Inside the hut, Inuyasha walked back out to tell everyone the good news. Ezi felt a prick in her arm, then some sort of calming warm that surged through her veins, and then she gained consciousness again. She was covered with a blanket, and Kabuto was washing off tools in the sink across from her, his back to her and towards the running water.

"What…?" She felt a bandage on her left shoulder blade, and the cool breeze brushed against her bare skin, so she covered herself with the blanket.

"Feeling better?" He asked, turning the water off.

"You helped me? Thanks, you've been doing that a lot lately."

He chuckled and faced her. "Give it a day before you start working out again. By then the wound will be completely gone."

"You're amazing… I feel really good."

"I gave you some energy from my own chakra, so your cells would heal faster; that's the sensation you're feeling all around you."

She felt exposed, considering she wasn't wearing a decent top underneath the blanket.

"I should have been faster. Sorry you had to take care of me." She looked down sadly at her feet dangling off the counter.

"It wasn't a problem." He said factually. "But, maybe you could pay me back?"

"How?"

"By answering a question for me."

"That doesn't sound too hard."

"I saw that scar on your back."

She didn't respond right away.

"Where did you get something like that? It must have been a deep cut for it to scar so tremendously. I've seen plenty of ninja with scars, they all tell a story, so I was just curious."

"I wish this one had a story." She said meekly. "This is, something I've had since I can remember. Funny, right? I might have gotten it in the car accident my parents were in, that's all I can think of. I apparently wasn't in the car, but they found me crying in the streets, wet and with that cut."

Kabuto was staring at her, through her, and she wasn't sure what else to say.

"Huh, interesting. You and I are more in common with our pasts then I assumed."

"How so?"

"I woke up with huge wound on my head when I was boy, but I couldn't remember what happened in my life up to that point. It's funny how things like that happen."

"I don't know if funny is the word, but it does kind of suck, not knowing."

"Yeah…"

"Ezi!" Amy ran in and jumped up and hugged Ezi around her waist. "I'm so glad you're okay! Thank you Mr. Kabuto for saving her life!"

"It was nothing." He said kindly. "You girls better head back to the ship, it's getting late, right?"

"Yeah, thanks for everything." Ezi and Amy joined the others and they returned to the ship after saying their farewells to Iruka and Naruto, preparing for a new day.

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	16. scroll 98: Boss Battle

**9.8: Boss Battle**

"Where did Ezi-chan go?" Tails asked that early morning.

"She probably went with Kabuto!" Amy declared.

"Oh, brother." Inuyasha yawned. The team was moping around preparing for the hunt to find the keyhole that day, and possibly defeat some Heartless before any one noticed the influx of shadowy creatures preying on the village.

"If she's not here, lets' go without her." Knuckles decided.

"We have to find that keyhole!" Sora agreed. "I'd feel guilty if we left this world after the third exams and left a bunch of Heartless here."

"Let's split up and see what we find." Knuckles decided.

They ventured back into the peaceful village. Sonic had hoped to see Naruto, his pleasant and energetic friend, but he must have been hard at training with his new teacher.

Kagome was working in the flower shop while Ino and Sakura visited Lee in the hospital.

Knuckles Tails and Sonic decided to run around the village, dashing and gliding passed oncoming citizens of the ninja village.

"Bet yah can't catch me, Knuckles!"

"Shut up, this isn't some speed racing game!" He scolded from far behind. Sonic was running and looking back so quickly, he didn't notice he'd stumbled upon Shino and Ten-Ten's training spot. He halted as he stared at the odd scene with wide eyes as the two looked back at him; Ten-Ten appeared normal, but Shino had thousands of black creeping, crawling bugs buzzing around his fingertips.

He chuckled nervously. "Sorry to interrupt your… thing." He waved his hand firmly to them. "Um, have any of you seen a giant keyhole around here?"

"Huh?" Ten-Ten said.

"I did not know the Sun village was extending their stay in Konoha." Shino replied.

"Well, it beats the long trip back! Anyway…"

Tails and Knuckles crashed into Sonic from behind, and they all went tumbling into the sand pit where the training ground lay.

"Man, I thought this mysterious village would be more graceful." Ten-Ten complained.

"Get off!" Sonic demanded.

"Sorry." Tails leapt off and Knuckles rolled onto his knees, dusting the sand off.

"Hey, you're on Lee's team, right?" Knuckles pointed at Ten-Ten.

"Oh, yeah…"

"Hey, that's right!" Sonic realized. "How's he doing?"

"Uh, well he's still in the hospital."

"Will he recover soon?" Tails asked hopefully.

She shook her head grimly.

"Man! We gotta go visit him sometime!" Sonic decided.

"Oh, okay, that's fine…" Ten-Ten was baffled.

Tails phone began to buzz. "Hello? Amy? You're where? The third chunin exams?"

"What?" Knuckles overheard.

"Okay, we're on our way!" Tails hung up. "That was Donald. I couldn't really understand him, but we should head to where they're holding the third exams!"

"The arena? Where is it?" Sonic turned to Shino. "Oh, bug-guy! You must know."

"Head west. It's at the north east wall, a few long kilometers from the Hokage mountains."

"Thanks! Gotta go!" Sonic ran and Tails and Knuckles followed suit. They reached the large dome, constructed not too far from where the demon had attacked the village. The gates were closed, but Sonic and his alleys easily found a way over, seeing their comrades inside the arena. There were trees and grass and spots of dirt around the large battlefield, and it was being used predestined for the battle of fate. Inuyasha, Sango, Kagome, Shippo, and Shadow were there as well with Donald and Goofy, vanquishing the small Heartless, and Sora had his hands full with the Guard Armor. It was a large purple and magenta Heartless that resembled a knight, with a helmet and claws that spun around occasionally for the others to duck and dodge or fly away.

"I got you, Sora!" Sonic jumped in to the fight, beside him. They both had to split when the Guard Armor began twirling his arms around in a circle, trying to slice them.

"Damn it, I could take all of these things out with my wind scar!" Inuyasha cursed, slashing another flying Heartless in the air.

"We can't damage this place, this is where the third exams will be held!" Sango said through her mask. Kagome shot a few arrows through several swarming Heartless, and Donald used his magic while Goofy whacked them with his golden shield. Then, a dark cloud descended above the Armor's stance. Sora and Sonic stepped back to watch the buzzing cloud engulf the Guard Armor.

"Ew! Are those, bugs?" Kagome realized.

Shino and Tent-Ten appeared. Shino had his arms raised out with a few tiny bugs crawling on them, and Ten-Ten was holding some sort of lance connected to a chain she was using to swing it around with.

"This thing doesn't have chakra," Shino said sternly, "almost as if it isn't alive."

The bugs reverted back into the air, and the Guard Armor sprang forward with stomping feet and jabbing claws.

"Take this!" Ten-Ten flipped up high into the air, and a scroll twirled around her like in the preliminaries. She shot tons of sharp weapons at the Guard Armor, the pierced through its floating limbs, head and body.

"Nice shot!" Sonic declared. He spun around the shaky Armor and created a Sonic Wind that blew the scattered limbs into a heap into the air, and they crashed down again when the wind cleared, twitching.

"Finish it off, Sora!" He declared.

Sora yelled as he hopped into the air with his Keyblade raised. He swung down into the core of the Guard Armor's body, destroying it. It dissipated into pure light and a crystal-like amaranth heart soared into the clear blue sky.

"Alright!" Donald cheer, twirling around and then folding his arms triumphantly.

Sora felt a surge of energy form his Keyblade. One of the kunais Ten-Ten had thrown was floating into the air, above a giant keyhole in the earth that had appeared. It sparkled and vanished. Sora raised his weapon and stood on the keyhole like a windy platform, and his Keyblade sealed the Keyhole with a warm light.

"Hmph, that was easy." Shadow mumbled.

"Thanks for your help!" Sonic said cheerily to the shinobi.

"We couldn't just leave saving our village to you." Shino said stubbornly.

"Neji's not going to believe this!" Ten-Ten said excitedly.

"Well, guess we'd better head out." Sora rubbed the bottom of his nose. "We got to get ready for the third exams!"

The team left the ninja and headed back towards the ship.

"With that Keyhole closed, does that mean we're trapped here even more now?" Inuyasha asked Sora.

"Nah, it just means that there Heartlesses can't keep pouring in!" Goofy replied.

"Yeah, we still have to fight in the third round to get out of here." Sora said. "Which reminds me, I need to practice pretending to be the Harekage!"

"Why don't you start now?" Sango said kindly.

"Okay!" He rubbed his chin and pretended to smoke a pipe by blowing into the air. "I'm the boss, so I say make me dinner!"

"That actually won't be a problem!" Kagome said happily. "I was planning to make food for everyone tonight!"

Inuyasha scoffed. "If it's not that cup noodle stuff, I'm not eating it!"

"Sit, boy!"

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TO BE CONTINUED!


	17. scroll 99: The Insane Gaara

**A/n: Hello! I intended to have some more side stories, but this is the last one I'm posting before chapter 10. Review if you like so far! Thanks for all the reviews so far!**

 **9.9: The Insane Gaara**

There was little time left now before the third exams would start. Kagome heard from Ino who heard from Sakura that Naruto was in the hospital from training injuries. She told Amy who told everyone and Sonic was the most concerned. He darted into the village to go visit the little ninja tyke in the medical center of the Hidden Leaf.

He knew what room he was in, and hopped onto the window ledge into his room. Shikamaru was there, and they were both giggling about something.

"Yo!" Sonic saluted with energy. He stayed crouched down on the window ledge, greeting them.

"Hey, Sonic!" Naruto exclaimed. "Long time no see!"

"Dude, how are you supposed to train me more in ninja arts if you are getting hurt in your own training?" He teased.

"What can I say, I worked so hard and kicked so much butt I had to finally take a breather!"

"Yeah, right." Shikamaru taunted. "The only butt that's gonna get kicked is yours if you keep messing around."

"Hey, we were just gonna tease Choji with this basket of fruit! Want to join us?" Naruto ignored him and asked Sonic this.

"Why not? Let the messing around begin."

Naruto hopped out of bed and the three of them walked down the empty hospital.

"I thought there were sick people here." Sonic said.

"I guess most of the nurses are out to lunch." Shikamaru said. "Oh, yeah. Lee's here too. We should go check on him."

Sonic recalled Lee's fight with the terrible Gaara of the sand during the preliminaries. He may never get to be a ninja again no thanks to that bone crushing freak.

"Yeah, we should go see him too!" Sonic insisted.

"His room is on the same floor. We should go see him first." Shikamru decided. They walked quietly towards Lee's room, but something was wrong. Shikamaru stopped them before they could reach the door. Naruto looked to Sonic, as if to tell him something, but he just pointed his finger to Lee's room. Was someone in there? Someone dangerous? The sudden seriousness of the two boys made Sonic think so.

Shikamaru crept in first, and he used his shadow possession jutsu on the intruder hovering over Lee's bed. Naruto leapt in and punched the guy in the cheek. Sonic knew he would have to use some type of sneak move to go in without being detected. He ran in and leapt into the air, running up on the wall where the head of Lee's bed was. He pushed the chakra he had just enough to his feet so that when his speed slowed down he would still stick on the wall. He crept all the way up, managing to complete the task of hovering on the ceiling over the intruder.

It was Gaara.

"What the heck are you doing in bushy brows room?" Naruto snapped. Gaara's face was cracking form where Naruto had punched him.

"I came here to kill him." Gaara said staidly.

Shikmaru's eyes shot towards Sonic for only a second, and Sonic placed his finger on his lips, as if to tell him to keep quiet.

"Didn't cause him enough trouble in the preliminaries?" Shikamaru was snapping at Gaara. "What else could you possibly want with him? Do you have some personal grudge against him or something?"

"I have nothing against him." Gaara said, which seemed to startle Naruto and Shikamru. "I simply want to kill him that's all."

"YOU KNOW WHAT?" Naruto yelled crazily, "YOU'RE SICK IN THE HEAD!"

"Yeah," Shikamaru agreed. "You think we're just gonna let you do what you want?"

"If you two stand in my way I'll have to kill you as well."

"OH YEAH YOU JUST TRY IT!" Naruto raised a fist at him.

"Whoa, take it easy!" Shikamaru warned. Sonic was thinking of how he admired Naruto's spirit, but maybe Shikamaru was right this time. "Do you want to make him mad? This guy is practically a demon!"

"He may act like a demon, but I have the real thing inside of me!" Naruto said it smugly, boldly, but Sonic couldn't help to notice the sweat and furrowed brows on his features.

"My demon is as real as yours." Gaara explained. "Since birth I haven't had a normal life. My father infused his jutsu on my unborn self, cursing me with the spirit of the sand, and I killed the woman who gave birth to me. I was born a monster."

"A sand… spirit?" Shikamaru wondered allowed.

"Its name is Shikaku. It's the reincarnation of an old sand monk who was sealed up in a jar of tea."

"Man, that's creepy."

Naruto was wondering if the demon was real in Gaara. He had one inside of him too.

"Your dad must have really loved you." Shikamru said dryly.

"Love? Don't tie me to your standards. The only emotional ties I have to my family are the ones I'd like to wrap around their necks. They are only ties of hate. My father tried to protect me until I turned sic, for I was supposed to be the salvation of the Hidden Sand. I was the Kazekage's child. For a long time I thought that was love."

"Then, what happened?" Shikamaru asked. Sonic wondered if the boys were trying to stall Gaara for some reason.

"My father tried to kill me, more times then I could count!" Gaara said it wildly, with a sickening wide smile.

"You just finished telling us that your father pampered you. So which is it?" Shikamaru snapped.

"After something gets too powerful you start to fear it. The justu that gave me power made something unbalanced in my mind, and the village noticed it. My father and the village realized I was becoming a terror. The purpose of my life for them was extinguished as their salvation was now their fear, and they had to destroy me. For myself, though, I needed purpose… because without purpose you might as well be dead."

Sonic hopped his clammy thoughts and body wouldn't cause him to fall on top of this creep. It sounded as if Gaara had a most difficult life, but he was going about it the wrong way. Eggman had tried to hurt, even kill him and his Knothole allies since he was a baby, but he had not retaliated out of hate the way Gaara was… why?

"I realized my purpose later was in the killing of others. For a while I lived in fear of the would-be assassins who tried to murder me, but now I live in peace…"

Did he have to protect himself for all those years? Alone?

"…I live souly for myself. I love only myself. The death of my mother brought me to this world, and the killing of others is what keeps me here."

Sonic could see the boys becoming increasingly concerned by the second. He wondered if he should drop down, or use an attack—something to stop this maniac from doing anything else.

"As long as there are people to kill in this large, crowded world, I will remain satiated. I will never disappear."

Naruto was frozen, and even though the shadow possession was still at his feet, the sand began to raise into the air and attack them.

"Now, let me feel alive!" Without the moving his body, the sand seemed to obey Gaara and headed towards Naruto and Shikamaru. Sonic dropped down onto Gaara head, landing on his red hair with both red shoes like he was a platform.

"Not today, buddy!" He said. Gaara grunted in pain at the impact to his head, and Sonic hopped off and ran towards Shikamaru and Naruto, grabbing both and running them out of the way of the crushing sand on time.

They all slammed into the wall by the door, seeing Gaara was furious now.

"Alright, that's enough!" Guy sensei was suddenly at the door. "Save your energy for the match tomorrow!" He snapped at Gaara.

Gaara didn't seem, but shocked. He gripped the side of his head like he was still in pain, and walked wobbly towards the door. Guy stepped out of the way casually to let him leave.

"All the same I will kill you." He said looking back to them. "I will kill you all."

The room was silent for a while.

"He seems nice." Sonic said finally.

"Oh man, that was close. Thanks Sonic, and Guy sensei." Shikamaru said.

"You boys better head out. Get some rest for tomorrow's competition."

"Thanks, Guy." Sonic said. The boys went their separate ways as the sun went down. Sonic went with Naruto to the Ichiraku Ramen Shop. They drank fresh cold water as they waited for their bowls. Naruto was paying for Sonic's meal, so they both ordered small bowls with only a slice of meat in it.

"I hope Guy keeps an eye on Lee. Man, that was whacked!" Sonic was trying to make conversation, but Naruto was quiet.

"Don't let that guy get to you, bud." Sonic patted him on the shoulder. "You won't have to fight him in exams. You have your own fight against Neji to focus on!"

"You're right…" Naruto sounded mystified by his own thoughts. "But, I just froze when Gaara attacked. What if I do the same in that match?"

Sonic paused and looked forward. He could see the chef and his daughter cutting up vegetables and preparing their small order in a scurry.

"I was thinking how lonely Gaara must be. He has family but he doesn't even see them as that, and he's had to fight all his life."

"That could have been me." Naruto explained. "I was a lone for a long time, worried about this monster inside of me."

"The nine tails?"

"Yeah. But, My friends and people like Iruka who took care of me helped me have a good purpose in life. Gaara had to find his own and he come up with… that."

Sonic sighed. "Its weird how people become what they are today. For example, even though Shadow is on my team, he tried to kill me before we were friends."

"Really?"

"Yeah. His purpose was to destroy the world too! He thought the world was just full of dark, murdering people who had hurt someone he loved, and he wanted to take revenge. It took him time, but he figured out the world has cool people in it too, like me!"

Naruto chuckled.

"See? You'll be okay tomorrow. Gaara is one crazy creep, but maybe he can be changed too. Or at least, have his butt whooped to get some sense knocked into him. If anyone could do that, it would be you and the high spirited attitude of yours."

"Heh, you're right! None of the competition is gonna scare me away, no matter what!"

"That's the spirit!"

The daughter brought them two large bowls, covered in vegetables, lobster, meat, eggs and flavored noodles in soup.

"Uh, chef sir?" Naruto knew he had not ordered such expensive bowls.

"The third exams start tomorrow, right?" The chef spoke without turning to look at them. "Go ahead, eat up for your strength tomorrow."

Naruto and Sonic perked up, drooling excitedly over the hot food.

"Thanks!"

Sonic felt relief: Tomorrow, they would win the third exam and finally be able to head home. Things were looking up! What could possibly go wrong now?

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TO BE CONTINUED


	18. Scroll 10: Naruto vs Neji

**Scroll 10: Naruto vs Neji**

The day before the third exams, Sonic had gone to visit Naruto in the hospital. Meanwhile, the others were training or resting to prepare for the big day.

Ezi recalled the day after they returned from the preliminaries to the Blue Typhoon in the forest. She was resting on a branch in the cool breeze as she thought about her effort up to this point:

 _She had started early in training with Sora. He used magic and wind defense, whatever he could do to keep Ezi form hitting him, which was the challenge in this training game of theirs._

 _"Nice! You have gotten way better. Someday you may almost be as good as me!"_

 _"Ha-ha, very funny." She was ready for another round, but Cloud appeared between them. He had been observing them from a tree up above, until he was ready to reveal himself._

 _"Cloud, you feeling better?" Sora asked hesitantly._

 _"Fine." He said coolly. "I'll try to train her this round." He said. "You can take a break, Sora."_

 _They exchanged looks. "O…okay, that's fine. Sora stepped back towards the ship and observed. Cloud faced Ezi, slowly taking his Buster sword out from behind his back._

 _"What do you want me to focus on, Cloud?" Ezi asked._

 _He stared at her, quiet. "You need to work on speed." He didn't hesitate to throw down his Blade. "I will be striking you constantly. Try to block me."_

 _She nodded and prepared her Phantom Gem. Cloud was in front of her in a split second, his blade to his side. She whacked his sword upward, only for him to swing it right back down on her. Ezi managed to block, but he quickly shifted his blade to the right and she had to dodge. He grazed her cheek with his blade, but even after that he kept swinging. He stabbed forward, slicing through her tank top and cutting her side._

 _Sora winced at the side of the sudden cuts that had appeared on her. Next he swung from the left, slashing horizontally against her stomach. It barely grazed her flesh but it was enough to make a small paper cut size across her belly. His next strike was from above again, this time she dodged to the left and swung at him, but his blade had already made it's way towards her and he whacked her onto the ground with the flat side of it, so not to cut her._

 _She rolled back up quickly onto her feet._

 _"Stop!" She yelled in agitation. She was panting from exhaustion and held her stomach from the cut._

 _Cloud turned to face Her. "I killed you many times just now. Every cut I made would have been an easy opening if I was a real enemy. You're too slow to fight against Sephiroth."_

 _"So I'm not as quick as you and Sephiroth in hand to hand, so what?"_

 _His staid features morphed into anger. "So what? Sephiroth will kill you two seconds into the match, before you can even forfeit."_

 _"Who says I'm gonna forfeit, huh?"_

 _"I do." She felt like she was a child, being scolded by her father. "All we need is to have one winner come out on top in the Chunin exams, then we can go home. That winner is Sonic. Shadow will forfeit the match so he can win, and Sonic will be proclaimed as a finalist in the tournament. We don't need your victory, you don't need to fight Sephiroth."_

 _"But that's not fair! I don't want to just give up, after everything Sephiroth has done! He's gonna pay for-!"_

 _"Listen to me, Ezi!" Cloud snapped. She dropped her mouth shut closed. She had never been scolded or had Cloud be this angry at her before, ever._

 _"You can't defeat Sephiroth. Don't act so childish; you saw what he did to me in the preliminaries, I didn't stand a chance! Both of us our First-class Soldiers, and his speed is mercilessly unmatchable! He knows you're my friend, so he'll enjoy making a kill out of you. Don't you get it? No matter how much you train these next few weeks, you won't match the level of a fighter like Sephiroth. He's decades ahead of you!"_

 _"Cloud, I…"_

 _"He's dangerous, Ezi, don't you get it? Sora was lucky in the Coliseum tournament when they fought because of the magical bind of the rules that made it impossible to actually kill in the stadium. But here, it's different. He can do whatever he wants, and he'll strike to kill. The only reason he kept me alive was so that he could enjoy opportunities like this. He won't stop until he's hurt everyone dear to me, Ezi."_

 _"Well, he's messing with the wrong people! When he killed Aerith-!"_

 _"Ezi, please." Cloud intruded. "Don't do something foolish. We all want you to forfeit the match so you don't get hurt."_

 _"All of you?" She looked to Sora, who had a sober glance; she could tell Cloud was right. "None of you think I stand a chance?"_

 _"It would be better to leave it to Sonic. He's usually the hero, after all."_

 _He was trying to be normal about it, but their lack in her was somewhat disturbing, even if her opponent was Sephiroth. She finally caved._

 _"Okay, Cloud. I won't try to fight Sephiroth. I know how powerful he is. I'll forfeit the match."_

 _"Thank you." He said quietly._

 _"I'm gonna go get some food, see you." She turned to leave._

 _"Ezi-!" Sora wanted to say something reassuring, but Cloud shook his head at him. She could feel their eyes of pity on her back as she left. Once she was out of sight, she fell to the ground and bashed her fists into it._

 _She felt stupid. She knew Cloud was right, but she didn't want to feel helpless._

 _"What am I going to do? Even if I can't defeat Sephiroth now, I still want the power to be able to fight against somebody like that… my friends shouldn't have to be threatened by the likes of him!"_

 _After calming down finally, she decided to meditate. Her sensei, Sorceress Kega, was always concerned that she wasn't doing it enough, and now it felt like it was the perfect opportunity._

 _This battle is going to be inevitably defeat. I'll have to forfeit the match whether I want to or not…._

 _"You're beginning to irritate me again, Elizabeth." Sorceress Kega said. She had her arms folded with her book open as she approached. "I thought I told you to find a solution for everything, not give up."_

 _Kega wasn't truly there, Ezi could tell. It was in her meditation that she could gain this power of sight._

 _"But Cloud is right, sensei! I've trained with you for a year, Sephiroth is beyond more powerful than me! I can't hope to beat him."_

 _"Is that what you think? Just because some uptight, emo blonde twit says you can't, you truly think so? Any mortal would see it as impossible, but I didn't train just some dumb fucking human; I trained YOU. So get your shit together and stop acting like a failure."_

 _"Sensei, you're right. I apologize for my moment of weakness."_

 _"Apologizing to the enemy when you're struck down is considered weak and pathetic, so don't do it to me!"_

 _"Yes, ma'am. What must I do to gain power against Sephiroth?"_

 _Kega smirked. "There's a friend of mine who should be able to cut your training time in half. But, it will be a long time for you. You will still endure the years of training as I did for you before. But, at least, you will be ready to battle against him when the time comes…"_

It had been an upsetting day, but she had been training secretly in her meditation meetings with her sensei since then. Now, she felt ready for the exams, if need be.

"Oy, Ezi!" Sora was waving at her from below. "Wanna train?"

"I'm saving my energy for tomorrow." She stated.

"Oh, is that what you've been doing this whole time?" He said, jokingly. "And I thought you ditched us on our mission to find the Keyhole to hangout with that guy you like!"

"Guy I like?" She said to herself, then she blushed in realization. "You little spikey haired fool! I do not like Kabuto!"

He started laughing uncontrollably. "Riiiight." He continued to tease. "Where else could you have been all those days we were looking for you?"

"I-I-!" She couldn't tell him what she had been up to. "It's none of your damn business, key bearer! Go close some doors to darkness or something!"

"Oh man, your face is so red. I totally got you!"

She grunted disapprovingly. "Laugh it up, _Harekage._ You better be ready for tomorrow."

Nearby, Knuckles was training with Shadow.

Kabuto Yakushi leapt from the tree onto the ship. Shadow noticed him right away and grimaced. Even though Sasuke had confirmed Kabuto's story, he still didn't like him for some reason.

"Hey man," Knuckles waved to him, "what's with the flowers?"

"Hey Knuckles," Kabuto said happily, "And, uh, Shadow." he said less excitedly. "Is Ezi around?"

"She's over there in the trees." Knuckles pointed with his chin towards the spot she and Sora were chatting.

"Ezi-chan, mind if I come up?" Kabuto called.

Sora tried to hold in his laugh when he saw the flowers. "I gotta go, later!"

When she looked down and saw him she smiled, relieved Sora was gone now. "Kabuto-san! Come on up!"

He leapt gracefully up the trunk to the branch and crouched down in front of her.

"I brought you a present," He handed her the bouquet. She stared down at the flowers with wide eyes, not saying anything. "They're herbal flowers, they help to breathe easier. You told me how you hated roses, so I brought you these instead."

She still didn't speak.

He was slightly confused. "Do you like them, Ezi-chan?"

"I…I'm sorry, it's just nobody ever given me flowers before… and they're so beautiful." She took the flowers from him. "T-thank you so much, Kabuto-san…"

"No problem, I felt like you deserve them for all of your help. And, I wanted to still give you something useful."

"My help?" She chuckled. "What do you mean?"

"You've just made me more sure about myself since you've been here. You and your friends have been so nice to me, and I appreciate that. I'm glad to have learned so much about all of you while you've been here."

She gave an anxious smile in return. "It was nothing, Kabuto-san. You've helped us out a lot too, it's the least we could do-"

"But you particularly have helped me, so thank you." He insisted. "I just thought I'd give you a farewell present in case I couldn't see you before you all left after the exams."

"What? Won't we see you at the exams?"

"I'm afraid not; I have some preparations at the medical compound I'm working at, so I won't be able to visit at all."

"Really? Well, good luck with all of that." She paused. "I'm glad to have met you."

"Enough with being sentimental. Can I get a hug?"

She thought what Sora said when he was teasing her. "Uh, s-sure." She leaned forward and they embraced gently for a few seconds.

"It's been fun, really. I doubt we'll be popping up in the ninja world anytime soon, but if we ever come back, I'd love to see you again."

"Same here. So, you're all leaving right after the exams, then?"

"Actually, we are might leave during them, just so we can leave while we have the chance."

"I see. It's been some interesting past few weeks. It's a shame they're going to end. I wish you good luck on the exams, Ezi-chan."

"Thank you. Well, I'll see you around, then."

He gave her one last sincere smile. "Good bye." He vanished in a puff of smoke.

Maybe she wanted to say more to him, but she was slightly sad he had left. She had come accustomed to living in the ninja world, after all. Now, it was all coming to an end.

 _._

 _._

 _._

 _~…~_

 _._

 _._

 _._

The next day, everyone in the group was at the circular arena. Sonic recalled fighting the Heartless there with Sora, and thankfully they had been their before because for some reason they had had difficulty finding it a second time, but were able to get there on time.

Sonic, Ezi and Shadow entered the arena with the other contestants, and the rest of their friends were in the crowd encircling them from above the arena. There was cheering and chanting and roars with excitement as the third exam would finally begin.

"Go Sonic!" Amy cheered. Inuyasha and his friends, along with the other animals and Cloud were sitting in the row front of Sakura and Ino. They were surrounded by citizens and lords ready to watch the fight.

"Naruto is late, of course." Ino noticed.

"He'll make it!" Sakura insisted.

"Sure he will!" Amy added. "GO SONIC, I LOVE YOU!"

"She knows what she wants, at least." Ino said sarcastically, covering her ears.

"Ugh, where is that little orange kid?" Rouge carped. "And that little emo boy too?"

"You mean Sasuke? Good point, bat girl." Knuckles agreed.

The others in the arena were looking around as if entranced by the entire noise of the event.

"Hmph, if neither of them show up, it'll make our rounds go faster." Shadow said to Sonic.

"He'll make it!" Sonic said. All the contestants were lined up, and Ezi leaned slightly forward to get a glimpse of Shikamaru, on the other side of the proctor. This proctor was different from before, with similar brown hair and a cap on like the other jonin, but his eyes were a striking pale auburn and he had a toothpick in his mouth; less coughing too.

"Psst, Shikamru." She said. The boy looked over in curiosity. "Your match is first, right? Good luck."

"Thanks. Actually, Naruto's is first though." He said confidently. Before she stood up straight again, Ezi could see that Sephiroth was at the end of the line, beside the Sand ninja.

He was staring at her with a blank expression, as if observing her.

She swallowed and stared forward again. Even though she had trained so much in secret, there was some sort of relief that she would not have to fight him at all.

Then, there was screaming.

Everyone turned their heads to the front gate of the arena entrance, where Naruto was flying in. He yelled and rolled across the dirt towards the other contestants wildly. When the dust cleared, he stood up and yelled some more.

"Told you he'd be here." Sonic snickered.

"Guys! You won't believe it! There's a hoard of bulls coming here!"

"What nonsense are you talking about?" Shikamaru sounded irritated. "I don't see any bulls."

"No, seriously! They are coming right this way…" Naruto slowed down. He was analyzing the situation at hand. All the other dangerous contestants, from Sephiroth to Gaara, to his allies, from Shikamaru to Sonic.

"Hey, quit fidgeting." The proctor scolded him. "Stand up straight and proudly present yourselves to the spectators."

"Huh?" Naruto looked up to see the crowd clapping and cheering above them.

"You guys are hero of this year's chunin exams."

The audience was so high up in the bleachers shaded by the orange roofing, lifted by pillars; above the roof was where the Hokage sat, with a chair on either side of him. Sora, or the Harekage, was sitting beside him to his left. Sora had a similar hat and robe on, silk white, with a yellow triangular shape on the hat with the symbol in kanji for "Sun".

"I am looking forward to discussing diplomacy with you after the exams, Harekage."

"R-right! And I as well—or I mean, I am as well."

The Hokage gave an old chortle. "No need to be so nervous. You can relax."

Sora chuckled weakly. "I have heard good things from my sun ninja. Like they said your rookie nine were very friendly, but also fierce in battle."

"Your sun ninja have also been fierce."

Just then, a subordinate form the leaf with a scar on half of his appeared between them.

"Sir." He began whispering towards the Hokage. Sora could hear something about Sasuke and something called the ANBU, but he was busy taking breaths, trying to calm himself.

"Ah, there you are. Welcome, Kazekage." The Hokage looked over a to the right of them, and the Kazekage appeared in similar robes and blue hat, with two sandy robed subordinates on either side of him. His entire face was practically covered by a cloak, and all Sora could see was his intense sharp eyes.

"You must be tired from you long trip."

"Not at all, I'm quite glad the Leaf village is hosting this year, for your sake." The Kazekage sat down in the other chair, his subordinates on either side of him. "I'm sure the trip may have tired you out. Isn't it about time that you found someone to succeed you?"

"Hm?" The Hokage began to laugh. "You speak as if I'm an old man! No, there is plenty of life in me; I plan on sticking around longer." The Hokage rose from his chair and looked down over the balcony. "Now then, its time to begin."

Sora felt tense. Suddenly there was a presence beside him. His supposed subordinate was Inuyasha; each kage needed some kind of bodyguard, it seemed.

"Finally, its starting." The half-demon sounded thrilled.

"Everyone! Welcome to this amazing event, when nations can join in harmony and commence in battle with one another. Please enjoy the third round of the exams today!"

The proctor, Gekko, explained that Dosu would not be in the final rounds any longer. So, Shikamaru was fighting only Temari now. He asked every one of the contestants to go to the break hall, and leave Naruto and Neji to the first fight of the exams.

"Go Naruto!" Sakura cheered.

The arena was quiet for a long while. Neji stood with his hand stretched out to Naruto as the battle began, but neither one of them moved.

Finally, Naruto threw his kunais. Neji blocked one with his own kunai, catching it with the bottom of his weapon before it could reach his face. They went into a fistfight, and Neji blocked everyone of Naruto's fast whipping attacks with his hand. Neji put his index and middle fingers together in both hands, and poked into Naruto's shoulder. For a flash moment, Naruto recalled the intense battle between Neji and Hinata. He had used the same technique on her, to block her chakra and probe into her vital points.

"Shadow Clone Jutsu!" Naruto summoned several, many dopplegangers of himself, and surrounded Neji.

Neji Hyuuga scanned the clones with his pale violet, Byakugan eyes. He realized Naruto had laid an equal amount of chakra within each clone, so he could not tell who was the real Naruto.

"Nice one. Neji can't block his chakra if he can't find the real Naruto." Sonic said impressively. Ezi tried to stay focused on the match, but she could feel the ominous eyes of Sephiroth on her from across the room.

"Get ready for us!" The Narutos declared.

"If you're going to come at me then come on!"

"Don't ever underestimate me!"

The Naruto clones charged all around Neji. Naruto seemed to have kicked him in the chin, which made those rooting for him excited. Neji had actually dodged by lifting his chin up, and he flipped back onto his feet in the air. He jumped and twirled in the air, drop kicking two of them as he landed swiftly. He grabbed more that brushed by him as he dodged, and threw them into other clones. The remaining two charged, and Neji twirled around and poked them both in the chest so hard, they went flying into the air and vanished. The crowd was shocked to see such agility in Neji, and how easily a genin could use his hands alone to vanquish the clones.

The real Naruto looked in horror as the dust cleared and he could see Neji standing alone.

"You thought you could be Hokage? Never." Neji taunted. Naruto growled in response. "My eyes can show me many things. One thing it shows me is people's limitations. Nobody can change; everyone has their limits. It's foolish to think a fool such as you could ever change to become Hokage!"

"A fool, huh?" Naruto's fists tightened on his sides. "Not this crap again! Who are you to judge who can and can't change?"

"You think anyone can be Hokage? That all it takes is a little hard work? Not every ninja can be Hokage; they were chosen at birth by destiny. Everyone is given a path, and they must follow it obediently. There is only one path we all share equally…."

There was a pause, and someone in the audience knew that there was hatred in Neji's eyes.

"Death."

"Yeah, we'll see about that! Shadow Clone Jutsu!"

Naruto made maybe ten more clones than before, and they surrounded Neji and they fought. He easily moved in and ducked and dodged every Naruto that punched form the front and behind him, and spun under and passed and around them until he could hop away.

"No matter what you do, my eyes can see through you!" Neji sprinted passed all the clones, forward to one Naruto in the back. He was there in seconds, and poked into the nerves above Naruto's heart in his chest.

"You're the real one, aren't you?" He said mockingly. "Everytime you attack with your clones, it makes it easier for me to see which one of you isn't."

Naruto was stiff for a moment, and all the clones disappeared. He dropped to the ground.

"No!" Sakura cried.

"Uh oh, he got pinned!" Shippo declared.

Neji smirked. "I told you."

"And I told you not to underestimate me!" The Naruto before him disappeared.

"A clone? How?"

In the air behind him, Naruto clones were coming down on him. Before they could reach, though, an invisible made of chakra presented itself as Neji spun around. The chakra pushed the clones back, and Neji was able to twirl around the energy in a complete circle.

"He can make a barrier out of chakra, just by spinning around?" Sango noticed from above. Naruto tried to attack at once again, but he made another spin that knocked them all back, and he created a crater under his feet.

"Gentle fist. Eight Trigrams 64 palms." Neji made a stance by crouching lowly and stretching his arms forward and back. He charged for the real Naruto, spinning around and then piercing him across his chest.

"2 palms! 4 palms! Eight palms!"

"No way!" Sonic yelled. They watched in amazement as Neji's strikes were continual across Naruto's body.

"…32 palms! 64 palms!" Neji gave one final push into Naruto's body after countless strikes, and Naruto fell backwards, falling facedown into the ground. The proctor Gekko approached after a few seconds of Naruto's staid state. He seemed to be struggling to stand up, but he couldn't stand up.

"Look likes it over." The proctor said to himself.

"You see? Everyone has a fate. Accept yours."

For some reason, nobody moved for a moment.

"Come on, Naruto…" Sakura chanted to herself. Naruto was distressed by th thought of his fallen friends, Lee and Hinata, who had fallen in battle after working so hard. It wouldn't be him. It couldn't be him. He rose slowly.

"How?" Neji sounded surprised.

During the match, Sango noticed Kiba in a rush with a man in a mask and brown cloak covering his body. The man was holding Hinata, who had blood trickling from her lips.

"Oh no!"

"What is it, Sango?" Kagome asked.

"That girl Hinata, she doesn't look so good."

Kagome looked up at Sakura, who had not noticed and was still watching the fight.

"Go check on her, to make sure she's okay. Wouldn't want to make a scene here and worry everyone for no reason."

"Right." Sango hurried up the stairs to the open space, where the man had laid Hinata down and was pressing some kind of green light chakra into her chest.

"What are you doing?" Kiba demanded.

"Relax, I'm a doctor."

"Doctor?" Sango thought of Kabuto, but that was just coincidence in her thoughts, since he was the only medical ninja they had met. Surely there were hundreds of them.

"Is she going to be okay?" Sango asked.

Kiba scanned her. "Oh, I remember seeing you somewhere in the exams."

"She'll be just fine. No need to worry." The man in the mask said.

"Oh that's a relief." Just then, Kiba's dog began to growl. He was nuzzled in Kiba's jacket and he popped out from the neck of it to bark at Sango.

"Hey, what's wrong boy?"

Then, Kirara jumped out from the back of Sango's robe, and raised her fur and back up. She began hissing at Akamaru.

"Oh! They're not our enemies, Kirara. Calm down!"

"I appreciate your concern, but maybe you should split. Our pets don't exactly get along." Kiba said it with an amused smile.

"Right." Sango nodded. "I'm just glad she is okay." She headed back to sit with her friends to watch the fight unfold.

Neji was speaking of destiny, and how everyone was bond to their own. He took off his shinobi headband to reveal a long green mark etched on his pale forehead.

"This symbol, is proof of what I mean." He explained. "It is a curse mark brand my people have. Since birth, I was destined to one roll, without any say."

"What are you talking about?" Naruto demanded. "That cursed arts?"

Everyone listened in to Neji's story intently; the great fighter, who seemed to bear some sort of tragic uprising:

"When I was little, the land of lightning had made peace with the hidden leaf. One of the main leaders of the Cloud village came and there was a parade to celebrate all throughout the hidden leaf. The only clan that was not there was the Hyuugas. They were having their own ceremony because the princess of the higher branch was turning 3. Lady Hinata, was turning 3."

"Hinata is a princess?" Amy exclaimed.

Neji continued: "We are cousins. My father and her father are twin brothers. But because he was born a few seconds earlier, my uncle became head of the higher branch, and my father was put in the lower, serving branch."

Neji himself recalled when his uncle took Neji under his wing. The day they branded Neji with the curse mark. He remembered the day his father simply glared at Hinata with the wrong intent, and his uncle was able to cause great pain to him with a simple wick of his finger, directed at the curse mark on his head.

"This symbol was used to keep us in our place, and could be used to turn our minds into jelly if we did not serve them willingly."

"Yikes, that's harsh." Sonic mumbled.

"Slavery always is." Ezi said thoughtfully.

"One night, an intruder came into our clan and took Hinata. They wanted the power of the Byakugan. But, lord Hiashi, my uncle, stopped the masked intruder by killing him. And, do you know who the villain was? The leader of the cloud village, who the village had just made a treaty with. The cloud village claimed the hidden leaf was in violation of the treaty for this murder, and demanded recompense. Things got worse, and a war seemed to be coming, which the leaf village wanted above all things to a avoid… so they come up with a deal."

"Deal?" Naruto echoed.

"A life for a life… they wanted the man who killed the cloud leader, so lord Hiashi had to die."

"But, I thought you said earlier that he was in crowd today." Naruto reminded. "So, what happened?"

"They took a man's life, but it wasn't Hiashi…" Neji's grip tightened on his headband, and his eyes shook with fury. "My father took his place as a body double, in order to keep the heir of the branch intact! He did it in order to protect the main household! Only in death was he free of this evil curse mark. They were twin brothers with so much in common, but they had different destinies they were bound to, and just because one was born only a few seconds after the other."

Naruto was looking at him pitiful, wide eyes.

"This match is the same. Your fate was sealed the moment I was chosen to be your opponent. It is your destiny to lose to me, for sure."

"Oh yeah, well we won't know that until you beat me!"

Neji slowly began tightening the headband back around his forehead.

"I get it that your father died a long time again, and maybe it wasn't fair, but you can't tell me that's what destiny is, no way!"

"Of course you wouldn't understand…" Neji sprang foreword, and he whacked into Naruto's chest again, throwing him back into to the ground.

"Proctor, its over." Neji insisted. Naruto didn't stand. "You're a failure."

"Wait… I'm not done yet…" Naruto rose slowly, gripping his chest. "I never give up! That's my nindo, my ninja way!"

Neji recalled Hinata's similar stance during the preliminary fight, and there was a slight relief in everyone who was rooting for Naruto as he stood up again.

"All this destiny crap! If you believe it so much how come you're the one running away?"

"You impudent brat. We all have a destiny at birth, you obviously don't understand it! You don't understand what its like to have a mark that you can't just wash away!"

Naruto caught his breath, and he thought of himself crying, and alone almost all of his life. Everyone hated him for having the nine tails trapped inside of him, a curse that was given to him at birth he had no choice over.

"Yeah… I know what that's like." Naruto said smugly. "So what?"

"Why you little-!"

"You don't get it! Everyone has their own problems! Did you ever think that it wasn't fair for Hinata, too? Its not her fault her father was born a few seconds before yours, and yet you blame her all the time! You disrespect her when she just wanted to prove herself and get respect from you, even if it almost killed her! And what's that about anyway? All your talk about destiny; wasn't yours to serve them, not to bleed it to bloody pulp! You don't really believe in destiny either, do you?"

Neji smirked. "Your wasting time. I have blocked all of your chakra points, so you can't use any of it; how do you plan to defeat me without it?" His Byakugan appeared in his eyes again, the veiny pulses on his head. "Its cute that you sympathize with Hinata, because you're about to share the same fate!"

"Oh really? You think that Byakugan of yours sees everything?"

"You got it. But if you think you can prove me wrong, now is your chance."

"I'm about to prove you wrong about a lot of things!" Naruto stood frozen, thinking. _Easier said then done. I feel like I don't have chakra at all! I haven't felt this drained since my training with the old perv, Jariyah…_

Then, he remembered something. Something important.

He made a hand sign.

"It's pointless, you don't have any chakra." Neji taunted.

Naruto grunted, thinking about Hinata and Lee, and how he promised to wipe the floor with Neji.

"Why do you keep trying to go against fate?"

"…Because everyone said I was a failure. I'm about to prove them wrong!"

A slow burst of red chakra poured out of Naruto, and then it whipped around a like a powerful wind. Neji was shocked, and he covered his face as the power blew rocks and dust into the air.

"The nine tails chakra." Kagome realized. "He's using it instead of his regular chakra, and its controlled!"

"No way." Knuckles said amazed. "Go, Naruto!"

Naruto threw two shurikens at Neji, but he used his swirling attack with his chakra to blow them back. He caught them in the air and grabbed more from his pouch. Naruto was jumping from the wall towards Neji, and he threw the shurikens at him, but Naruto was gone in a flash.

 _His speed has grown too! What on earth is he?_

Neji spun to collide kunais with Naruto, as he had suddenly appeared again. They charged at each other with a leap in the air and crossed blades again.

"You said you are a close combat ninja, right?" As Naruto charged, he cut through the ground he was moving so quickly. "It may be the Hyuugas way to accept fate but it's not mine! I'll change the fate of the Hyuuga clan!" Their chakra infused kunais created a harsh light when they interacted. "…After I become Hokage!"

There was a loud explosion. The light spread out and blinded the audience, until it died out. There was a large crater in the ground where they had stood, and two deeper holes inside of it.

"Which spot is Naruto?" Sakura asked worriedly.

"Don't ask me, I don't even know what just happened!" Ino exclaimed. The crowd watched quietly as someone emerged from the hole, struggling to pull themselves from the ground. Weakly, Neji swayed back onto his feet and walked to the other spot, where Naruto was lying unconscious in the dirt.

"No, he lost…" Ezi realized.

"Damn, the kid got close too." Shadow commented, folding his arms.

Sonic just stared in disappointment.

"…I told you this was your fate. You put up a good fight, but you can never break destiny-"

To everyone's immediate surprise, something was springing up in front of Neji's feet from the ground. He was looking straight down at a fist, and suddenly Naruto's knuckles were rammed into Neji's chin, and they were both flying into the air on harsh impact. Naruto created a victorious yell as he came up form the ground. Neji went flying into the ground, unable to move. The shadow clone Naruto had created in the crater, pretending to be him unconscious, went out.

"He dug into the ground after they made contact. He never gave up." Sonic said proudly.

Naruto walked weakly over to Neji.

"For your information, I failed the graduation three times! And it took me a long time to get one jutsu I just couldn't master. With that justsu I was able to become a genin. That's right; I was terrible at the shadow clone justu, they were pathetic clones. So don't talk to me about destiny, and stop trying to tell me you can't change who you are! You can do it to, because unlike me you're not a failure."

Neji watched a brown bird leave the tree near them, and it soared into the air and blocked the sun.

Gekko smiled. "The winner is: Naruto Uzumaki." The crowd cheered excitedly, and the first match was won.

Naruto rubbed the bottom of his nose as he looked around, he had never had so many people rooting for him and charring for him at once; his spirits rose.

"YEAH ALRIGHT I DID IT!" He began running around alongside the walls, waving and blowing kisses at everyone.

"Amazing he still has energy to run around like a dork." Ezi giggled. "Good for him."

"Oh man, Naruto beat Neji?" Shikamaru sounded annoyed. "He was just like me back in the academy, a dorky and uncool guy!"

"Dorky and uncool?" Shino addressed.

"Now he's kicking butt like Neji? What does that mean for me? Oh man, I'm depressed."

Two medical ninja came into the arena with a stretcher, and picked up Neji.

Neji was visited by Hiashi, who gave him a scroll written by Neji's father, to forge his own destiny. He told him the truth of being forced to have his brother be used as a double for the sacrifice. Neji did not fully understand it, but Hiashi ended up bowing to him; he fell to his knees and lowered his head like a lowly servant to Neji, probably for all the guilt he had all these years for having hurt Neji in such a way.

"Please, lord Hiashi… don't bow to me." Neji felt pity for the man following a fate he had not wished for. He was unsure if destiny was something to follow or make, but his fight with Naruto was pulling his heart in the right direction…

.

.

.

TO BE CONTINUED!

I decided to break the exams down by their battles. This chapter was originally longer... but I think they are too lengthy. Anyway I hope you enjoyed it!


	19. Scroll 11: Sonic vs Shadow

Scroll 11: Sonic vs Shadow

"This crowd is certainly buzzing." The Kazekage was speaking to the others.

"It must have been because of that last match." The Hokage said.

"Yeah, it was super awesome! Naruto did a number on Neji!" Sora said happily.

"Well, that is true," The Kazekage continued, "but maybe the crowd is excited for a match coming up after this next one? I'm sure many feudal lords and ninja from other lands have come to see the Uchiha fight."

The Hokage nodded with certainty. After Sonic and Shadow's round, Sasuke versus Gaara was supposed to be next. Sora stared into the arena nervously.

 _After this, we can go home… one of them just has to win the match. But with all of this excitement regarding Sasuke's fight, how am I going to sneak out before that match without looking suspicious?_

"This is it." Inuyasha said aloud. _We're finally gonna get outta this world and return home…_

"Of course, I'm sure the spectators are interested in the sun village's fights as well. This one particularly. Sonic is quite the interesting character, with inhuman abilities, I've heard." The Kazekage added.

"Well, he is a hedgehog, so it makes sense." Sora shrugged. The Kazekage sounded condescending in his voice every time he spoke, and it began to annoy Sora a little.

Gekko stood a few feet away, centered between Sonic and Shadow as they faced each other in the arena. The sun was shining overhead, and their crimson and emerald eyes were fixed on each other, and victory.

"I feel as if I've seen this fight before…" Rouge said aloud. Indeed, any comrade of the two animals were aware that they were each other's true rivals. Since Sonic had encountered Shadow in Central City, their glorious rivalry had begun. Who was faster? Who was better at fighting? It always seemed to be equal every time they brawled, among witnesses, or otherwise.

"Pssst, Rouge!" Kagome whispered. The bat leaned in towards the girl, and Sango and Cream were between them. "Who did they decide on who would win?"

"Huh? Actually, I don't know. I would assume Shadow wouldn't agree until it was in his favor."

Shippo joined the conversation, leaping onto Kagome's shoulder and leaning in. "I thought it was supposed to be Sonic that comes out on top!"

As everyone watched, they realized they had not had an actual discussion on how this match was supposed to go…

"Ready to give up?" Sonic asked, mockingly.

"Hmph, you're the one who needs to prepare for your defeat." Shadow retorted. Gekko exchanged glances between both of them, and wondering how these two creatures existed, and how they were participating in these shinobi, chunin exams.

"Are both contestants ready?" He asked, rolling the toothpick in his mouth.

Shadow nodded.

"You got it!" Sonic said cheerily.

"Then, the second round will begin." Gekko stepped backwards, until he was a few yards away from the two hedgehogs.

The audience was quiet. Sonic crouched his knees a bit, and Shadow kept a straight posture. They began following each other in a slow circle. They were silent, cautious.

"Come on, are they gonna brawl it out or what?" Ino whispered impatiently.

Sonic smirked. "Might as well give the people what they want?"

"Hmph, if you mean your victory, that's not going to happen." Shadow was calm. "One thing the people like to see more than the hero winning, is seeing them fall."

"Technically, you're a hero too now, right?"

"Wrong again. I am the ultimate life form, with my own goals and ambitions. One of those goals is defeating you, to reclaim my title appropriately."

"Such drama." Sonic teased.

Shadow was running. He skated with his booster shoes in the circle pattern towards Sonic. Sonic blocked all of his quick punches and kicks with a similar pace, and suddenly they were zipping in lights of blue and yellow around the arena. Shadow was in the air above him, and Sonic blocked his incoming kick by grabbing his heavy shoe, and throwing him back into the air. Sonic jumped up to meet him while he off balance in the sky, but Shadow caught hands with him as they flew into the air. He tried kicking him again on the side, and it whacked Sonic down towards the wall, which he used as support and leapt off it into the ground, where Shadow was waiting. He appeared behind him, and Sonic ducked and slid, spinning himself around to face Shadow as they began an impossibly fast, back and forth punch and kick brawl.

The crowd was making amazed comments about their speed.

"They're not even using jutsu or their chakra it seems, but they're already so fast!"

"Look at 'em go!"

"This is way cool!"

Rouge looked around at all the people. "Hmph, you think they've never seen anything like it."

"I'm sure they haven't." Sango answered. "Even after seeing shinobi fight, there is something spectacular about the way Sonic and his friends fight.

After his own kickoff, Sonic flipped away from Shadow. He wasn't tired yet, but he could feel it approaching, and he had not made even a bruise on Shadow yet.

"Perhaps you should forfeit so your defeat is not as humiliating." Shadow walked slowly towards the right, causing Sonic to move in the same circular motion to keep the distance.

"Huh, I was gonna just say the same thing to you! We really are alike."

"I'm nothing like you." Shadow said menacingly.

Cream stammered nervously from the crowd. "Mr. Shadow seems kind of angry, doesn't he?"

"Chao-Chao." Cheese replied.

"Isn't he always angry?" Donald said. They watched as Shadow leapt for Sonic, and the blue hedgehog was forced to duck and dodge more swings. Then Shadow swung upwards, and Sonic ducked, but Shadow pushed his other palm forward towards Sonic's chest.

"Chaos Spear!"

"Whoa!" Sonic jumped up and away just in time, and the piercing yellow arrows that Shadow had summoned soared forward and sliced into the nearest wall. Sonic landed on the tree branch a few meters away.

"You could actually hurt someone with that attack, you know." Sonic was trying to sound entertained, but now he was worried. Shadow meant business.

"Come on, Sonic!" Naruto bellowed from the contestant's balcony. "Kick his butt!"

"It seems even here you've made fans." Shadow scoffed. "Typical."

"Jealous of me?" Sonic snickered. Shadow didn't waste time to attack him again. He threw the arrows at him, and they sliced and cut down the branch he had been standing from, pulling them into a chasing game.

"My, my, is that a normal technique?" The mischievous Kazekage seemed to be speaking to Sora without looking at him from his chair.

"Huh? What do you mean?" Sora leaned forward to look at him across the Hokage.

"It is odd for one to be able to summon jutsus without a hand sign. Is that something your village shinobi can do normally?"

"Oh, no! Sonic and Shadow are a rare case. Their looks aside, they have great agility and abilities."

"I see…"

Sonic and Shadow were suddenly running neck and neck with other around the arena. Shadow jumped onto the wall and began skating across it with his booster shoes, and Sonic followed up beside him. They created a twisted wind as they ran it like a course, attempting push each other off or ram into the other, keeping their quick pace. Sonic felt confident, and tried to spin kick him, but Shadow ducked and then landed a few fast punches in Sonic's chest, and one final one into his face that threw him down into the ground.

Sonic lay there for a moment, as Shadow approached.

Frustrated, he spun back up and began running onto the wall again, and Shadow followed him.

"Come on, I'll catch you again and beat you up more this time." Shadow stated. "What's the point in running? Is that all you can do against me?"

Seconds later, Shadow's prediction had come to light. He caught up to him and punched Sonic into the head this time, a pound that flung him into the ground. Sonic crashed and was unconscious on impact. Shadow dropped down near him.

"No! Get up, Sonic!" Naruto cried out. Ezi was surprised Sonic had given up already; maybe that was part of the plan, though? They did need only of them to win to move on to the next round, maybe Sonic was going to make the sacrifice? Now that she thought about it, they had never had an appropriate meeting as to who they were going to have win and move on for their round. She had just assumed Sonic was going to win.

"Hmph, I told you." Shadow began, but then he looked at his opponent on the ground hesitantly. Sonic disappeared into a puff of smoke.

"A Clone?" He realized it too late. From above Sonic was coming down on him, and he made a nice clean whack with his fist to Shadow's cheek, throwing him into the wall. Sonic leapt off the round towards him, and they locked hands, Shadow pinned against the wall.

"He used a clone?" Ezi realized.

"YEAHHH, ALRIGHT! That's my student!" Naruto exclaimed. Shadow was grunting in frustration as he tried to gain the upper hand, pushing against the wall to push back at Sonic. When he pushed off, they both slid across the dirt, making a long crater in the earth.

"So, you have new tricks?" Shadow said, struggling against him. "So do I." He had a stronger grip, and he managed to throw Sonic to the side. He went flying flat into the air, and landed on the wall, leaping off to strike Shadow again, but he was gone. Sonic looked around, spinning himself to find Shadow, but he had disappeared.

"Where the hell did he go?" Shikamru wondered. Everyone's eyes scanned the arena, but there was no sign of him. Suddenly, high above Sonic's head, Shadow appeared silently, like a breeze in the wind. In his hand was a large shuriken.

"Sonic, look out!" Amy yelled. Sonic looked up to see Shadow throw the heavy spinning weapon at him. He began running, and for some reason the Shuriken followed him.

"What the-?" Sonic cut through the trees, and the Shuriken cut down two thin ones before harshly stabbing into a piece of wood Sonic sped by.

Sonic rolled out of the trees to glance at Shadow, who was holding a green chaos emerald.

"Where did you get that?"

"From the Blue Typhoon, of course."

"Impossible, Tails always makes sure the emeralds are safe."

"He checked them this morning, and then I took it." In his raised hand, another shuriken appeared. "I created a jutsu using my chakra and infused the power of chaos control with weapons I can summon. The weapons follow anything going faster than the speed of sound, meaning you."

"What?"

"He created his own jutsu?" Sora repeated. "H-how did he do that?"

"Very resourceful, aren't they?" The Kazekage noted.

Shadow smirked. "I call this technique: The Chaos Control justsu."

"That name has a bit of copyright in it, don't you think?" Sonic said mockingly. Shadow was not amused, and showed his enthusiasm by summoning three more kunai's in the air. He grabbed them and then threw them at Sonic. When he dodged he ran, and the weapons glowed green and spun around to follow him.

"Yikes!" Sonic kept running, up the wall and in a circle and into the trees, trying to stop the weapons by having them land on something else first. When the last kunai triumphantly nudged into a branch, Sonic looked back with positivity, but almost missed Shadow appear in front of him holding a shuriken. He slammed the shuriken downwards, and cut through Sonic's cheek and the front of his right arm before he managed to jump away.

Shadow pointed the weapon at Sonic as they faced each other.

"Give up the match, or face my wrath." He said, and Sonic just grimaced at him.

"Shadow can control the weapons he uses? He seems to be using a summoning jutsu to bring weapons up too. That's really impressive." Sango said. "I guess Sonic wasn't the only one learning Ninjutsu."

"Shadow's serious too. He really means harm on Sonic if he doesn't forfeit." Rouge added. "I guess if he is supposed to be the winner, he may as well make it look real."

"Yeah right, but Sonic is supposed to win!" Amy snapped back.

Sonic glared intently across the way at Shadow, who was smiling triumphantly.

Sonic began running again.

"That won't work!" Shadow threw three green glowing knives at Sonic, and they tailed him around.

"Shadow clone justu!" Sonic held up the hand sign to his chest, and three more Sonic's appeared, and they all ran in opposite directions. The kunais began following them, and Sonic was free to turn around and charge at Shadow.

Surprised, Shadow blocked a kick, but failed to dodge the oncoming punch into his face. Sonic took initiative to keep punching into his face several times, and he gave one more punch that slammed him into the ground.

"Nice move!" Ezi declared, although she wasn't sure who to cheer for entirely.

Shadow gurgled in anger as he stood back up again slowly.

"Chaos Spear!"

"Sonic Wind!" The arrows and piercing blue wind entangled each other in a swirling grip, and caused a bright explosion that blew them both back. Sonic jumped up quickly, feeling a little dizzy from the explosion. He walked through the dust and dirt to Shadow, who was unconscious on the floor.

Sonic felt that something was wrong, and then Shadow disappeared in a white smoke.

"A clone?" Sonic proclaimed. He turned around and Shadow was there, swinging his shuriken forward. Sonic ducked and lunged backwards.

"Sonic wind!" Sonic held his ground and began whipping around Shadow. Shadow threw the shuriken and it glowed green, beginning to fly in the air behind Sonic as he ran. Sonic changed direction and ran towards Shadow, who was confused until Sonic jumped in the air. Right behind him was the shuriken, and Shadow had to leap to the left, and the blades barely missed his quills.

"They're really going at it!" Shippo declared.

They watched a heavy chase unfold. Sonic and Shadow ran side to side again, punching and kicking dodging. They were in the air or rolling across the earth, slamming into one another like sports balls, and unraveling and fist fighting again. It was an endless, faced paced agenda of conflict. Both of them were exhausting the other, and it seemed that their different abilities were being balanced out by their own clever moves and means to claim victory in the match.

They took a moment to catch their breaths, and Shadow took out his chaos emerald. It gleamed brightly in his hand.

"With this, you will have no victory." Shadow taunted. "I have limitless power and your time is about to run out."

Sonic cursed to himself. He needed something to go faster with as well, a relic like the chaos emerald. Shadow sauntered to him slowly, confidently. Sonic put his hands together, making a hand sign.

"What's the hedgehog doing now, I wonder?" The Kazekage thought aloud.

Sonic could feel his chakra swirling around him, some untapped energy he had only gained just recently here in the ninja world, and was using it to harness an energy accompanying him since for long years and adventures. He could picture the energy, resting peacefully somewhere on the ship, and he felt it going onto his hand. Tersely, a golden glow burst into his hand.

"No way! How did you summon that?" Shadow said, covering his eyes form the light.

"Its my weapon of choice! You're not the only one whose been practicing cool ninja moves!" Sonic held up the golden ring, and he swiveled himself into a ball, charging with a zap of light and power.

"You will lose!" Shadow grimaced and did the same, but the light surrounding him was green from the emerald. They were rolling in the ground, stuck like wheels in the mud, charging up their powers using their speed and objects to boost themselves forward. They crashed into each other, and incredible pulse of wind burst out into the air, ascending against all the walls and into the air, brushing through the crowd heavily. Everyone blocked and squeezed their eyes shut for a long moment, until the strike gusted into a slight breeze.

The dust cleared, and everyone waited with anticipation as the dust on the arena cleared out slowly, swaying out into the clear sky. Gekko approached the large crater in the ground and stood between the two contestants, observing them.

They were both still standing, covered in bruises and dirt after their equally charged collision with one another, and neither had moved for a long moment.

"They both seem to be out of energy." Sango examined. They stood, wobbly and facing one another for a few more moments, then they did the most staggering thing that none of them expected.

They both raised one arm up, and spoke in unison as if planned:

 **"I QUIT!"**

The crowd gasped in disappointment and exclaimed horror.

"No way…" Naruto was speechless.

"Ah, it can't be!" Amy cried.

"Since neither participant will continue, neither of them move on to the next round." Genma declared quickly.

The crowd was booing and spewing comments of degradation and disappointment all at once. Everyone else seemed angry, but the sun village members sat there in quiet shock.

"They both lost…" Knuckles said breathlessly. Everyone of them were having the same calculations in their minds.

"If neither of them won, then that means…" Kagome felt a shiver in her spine. They all looked to the contestant balcony, towards Ezi. She was staring down at the two comrades with wide eyes; sweat trickled down her neck as she slowly turned her head to the other end of the balcony, passed the leaf and sand ninja that were present; passed the shady Shino, and beyond the insane calm of Gaara of the sand, and into a black, silvery death. Her own death.

Sephiroth was staring at her, this time with a pleased and wild smile.

If Sonic or Shadow had not won, it meant her match was their only chance of escaping now.

"No, she can't fight him!" Cloud rose from his chair, as if to something, but he could do nothing. None of them could. Sora and Inuyasha stood quietly as the match ended, unsure of what course to take. After this round, they were supposed to be home free, but now…

"Sonic, you idiot!" Shadow yelled.

"Heh, heh. Look who's calling who an idiot. You were supposed to let me forfeit!"

"No, you were supposed to let me!"

"Wait a minute," Kagome turned to everyone sitting around her, "did we actually make it clear who was supposed to forfeit right away? Because I thought Sonic was going to do it!"

"I thought it was going to be Shadow." Rouge admitted.

"Me too!" Shippo included.

"I thought Mr. Sonic was supposed to forfeit." Cream said.

"Chao-chao!"

"….Oh my god." Knuckles smacked his forehead. "What have we done!?"

The stretchers for Sonic and Shadow emerged onto the scene, and carried them out into the infirmary somewhere inside the dome. They had both quit, but they had been evenly injured by that

"Knuckles… what do we do?" Kagome asked in a panic.

"What are you asking me for?"

"Your ancestor," she clarified, "isn't there something else we could do? Some other way to break the seal keeping us here? There's just no way…"

Knuckles swallowed. "I can't."

"You can try!" Sango insisted.

"No, I mean I can't contact her anymore. Tikal told me our signal was weak, and the time in the hotel we spoke was the last time she could help me while we were trapped here. I just didn't tell you guys so you would think I could be useful in the exams."

"Knuckles!" Amy said desperately. "Well, now what do we do? How do we..?"

"We can't ask Ezi to fight Sephiroth, there's just no way…" Sango said. They were racking their brains on an idea, but nothing came to mind. Their plans were ruined.

"Those idiots!" Inuyasha said. "What were they thinking?"

"I suppose they are equally matched." The Hokage responded. "Oh well, they both fought admirably."

"Yeah…" Sora sat down in horror. Their plans… what the hell were they to do now?

.

.

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TO BE CONTINUED!


	20. scroll 115: Before the Storm

**Please review if you're enjoying. Thank you for the comments so far, I didn't expect there to be so many for this crossover! But I'm glad you like! Now, what will happen now that Sonic and Shadow quit simultaneously? There have been some good guesses so far!**

 **Scroll 11.5: Before the Storm**

The next match was to be Sasuke and Gaara, but Sasuke had not shown up yet.

"I'll have no choice but to disqualify him." The Hokage was deciding. Sora and Inuyasha exchanged glances. If Sasuke's match was over, then only two more would happen before Ezi and Sephiroth's match.

They were running out of time.

The Kazekage was pressing on the matter:

"Come now, Hokage. Clearly everyone would like to see the Uchiha match. Isn't is our right as your allies to see some of the best from your village battle with someone from our village? This is great opportunity for our village as well, so surely there must be something we can do then cancel the most anticipated round."

The Hokage hesitated. There were many thoughts in his mind, particularly that it was odd for the Kazekage to be so interested in that fight. Granted, his son Gaara would be fighting Sasuke, so maybe it wasn't that strange after all.

"Very well, we will postpone the match, and I have decided to move the other rounds up until he arrives."

The man guarding the Hokage went and told Genma the details, then returned to his post.

"Where is Sasuke?" Naruto said worriedly. Ezi wondered what would happen next, but she went back to the halls inside the dome, searching for the infirmary Sonic and Shadow were in.

"Okay, everyone, listen up!" Genma's voice echoed across the arena, trying to calm the agitated, impatient crowd. "Sasuke's round has been postponed, and we will have the other challengers do their round first."

Even with the news that he wasn't disqualified, the crowd still chanted boos and disapproval.

"Good, Sasuke will still have a chance!" Ino declared. Beside her, Sakura was worried something may have happened to Sasuke relating to the curse mark Orochimaru gave him.

Kankuro was anxious, and knew for some hidden agenda reason that he could not have his match yet. He looked to Temari for certainty, and she nodded her head.

"Proctor!" Kankuro called down to him, "I resign from my match!"

Genma paused. "Well, since he has withdrawn, the winner of this round was Shino. He wins by default."

"What?" Shino sounded displeased he didn't get to fight. Sephiroth felt a stir of excitement; his match was drawing nearer.

The crowd booed and demanded a real match be shown to them, and then Temari jumped onto her giant fan and descended down into the arena.

"And you are?" Genma asked.

"Well, my match is up next, right?"

"Some one seems excited." He said. "Okay, the match between Temari and Shikamru will begin."

Shikamru was growing more nervous as he hovered over at the balcony.

"Oh man, what's with these matches being moved up all of a sudden? So not cool."

"Alright, Shikamaru!" Naruto patted him hard on the back, and Shikamaru felt himself being thrust over the balcony, losing his balance. "You got this match! You can do it!"

Shikamru made a helpless yell as he fell forward into the arena on his back with a loud THUD.

"Damn you…. Naruto…"

People began throwing empty cans and banana peels and pens and booklets at Shikamaru, who remained subsided, and they chanted for him to hurry up and start the match. All the while the lazy boy was thinking about how he was basically just a warm-up to them to prepare for Sasuke's match. Since their round had already started, Temari took the initiative to raise her closed fan over her head, and used it like a bludger to swing down onto Shikamaru as he lay there. When the dust from the impact cleared, Shikamaru was not there anymore, but above her. He was using two kunais under his feet as props to stand against the wall.

"To be honest with you," He spoke, dryly and apathetically, "I don't care if I become a chunin or not. But, I guess I should put in the effort so I don't lose to a female."

This angered Temari even more.

"Alright, bring it on." He said dully.

As the match continued, Ezi found the infirmary in the building. She passed by some men dressed in white hats and clothes, and then she found the rooms. The numbers and names addressed on them were in a different language, so it was difficult to tell who was in which room. Anxiously, she burst into all of them, hoping to find Sonic or Shadow—

"Oh, excuse me!" She had stepped in Neji's room. Neji was sitting on the side of his bed, and Hiashi was standing there facing him, and they both looked at her when she entered.

"It's not a problem." Neji said flatly.

"Oh, how are you feeling?" She asked timidly.

"Fine, now, but my pride is still injured."

She chuckled. "Well, you did well. Sorry to disturb you." She bowed her head and turned to leave, but he stopped her.

"Hey." He said seriously. "Is your match coming up soon?"

"Oh, yes."

"That was an impressive fight you had in the preliminaries."

"Thank you." She was surprised Neji had any compliments to give, considering his character so far.

"I hope your hard work up to this point will help you in the next round… and, if you have to fight Naruto in the very final rounds, don't underestimate him."

Whatever Naruto had said to him in their match, it had changed his heart indefinitely.

"I won't." She nodded and left. She found another room, and it was where Shadow was resting. He lay in some sort of grief on the white sheets, staring out the window, without looking at her once.

"You're okay, that's good."

"I failed." He said bitterly.

"Shadow, you didn't fail, but we should have talked about our strategy as a team. One of you needed to lose humbly, but neither of you intended to do that."

"Your damn right."

She sighed in frustration. "Honestly, hedgehogs and their pride." She shrugged and shook her head.

"Don't enter your match." He said suddenly. Even Shadow seemed to know what was at stake.

"I'm the only one left, I have to do it." She said mildly. "I just wanted to make sure you guys were okay, and… to say thanks for everything so far."

Neither of them said it, but it seemed like she was saying her goodbyes.

"Did I ever tell you you were my favorite Sonic character from the video games?"

"Hmph, you've only said it 100 times. It gets on my nerves."

"I know, but I was just making sure you knew." She smiled wryly at him, a sweet smile to cover her fear.

She headed for the door. "Be seeing you."

Suddenly, he was there, standing before her.

"I won't let you go to this match."

She sighed. "Shadow, we both know I'm going whether you try to stop me or not, so are you gonna make me waste my energy right now to fight with you before I have to fight him?"

"I failed Maria, and I failed Molly… I won't let more people die."

"Shadow… I'm not them. They both had heart, and were filled with kindness. But, they don't have what I have."

"Which is what?"

"The ability to fight against a being like Sephiroth. I'm not the kid that needs saving anymore. Please, trust me."

Shadow didn't move, but he let Ezi go by him in peace, and she closed the door behind her, leaving him to his decisions and thoughts, alone.

...

Meanwhile, Temari was making large leaps and calculations to stay away from Shikamaru's shadow possession justsu, but Shikamru surprised everyone with his skillful tactics, like using his jacket as parachute with a kunai to create a longer shadow, and then using the hole Naruto had dug underground with to finally capture Temari from behind with the justu. Despite being lazy and envious of the carefree life of a cloud, Shikamru seemed to come out on top when it came to brilliant strategy in his fight. He faced Temari and forced her to raise her hand up as he did the same with his. It had been am interesting match, but he finally caught her.

"So, that's it then, I forfeit the match." He said with hand raised.

The crowd chanted in confusion by his choice.

Temari was baffled. "What are you doing?"

"Well, I'm too tired from stretching my shadow so many times, so I only have a few more seconds before it wares off on you. I've calculated 200 times what my next move should be, and all of them put in more effort then I can muster, so I quit. It's the best solution with what energy I have."

Gekko stared at the lazy Shikamaru in amusement.

"Then, I declare Temari the winner by default."

Asuma and Kurenai observed his match to be more strategically sound, and less emotional frustration. In fact, most of the jonin found his moves to be beyond a genin; thinking on his feet with clarity was practically what was needed for one to be a squad leader, which he had.

Naruto hopped down from the balcony to give Shikamaru a piece of his mind about forfeiting.

"Has Sasuke shown up yet?" Sora wondered.

"It doesn't appear so." The Hokage said. "So, it would seem that the next match will be the one against your two sun ninja."

Sora looked to Inuyasha, who was just as frustrated on what to do next as well. Neither of them could converse openly about the fact that they were probably doomed, and that the next match simply could not happen.

The others were just as quiet with irrational thoughts, meshed in the riled up crowd.

"What do we do? If Sasuke doesn't show up, that means Ezi match is next up!" Knuckles declared.

"Hey!" Tails appeared, flying down from the stairs to greet the others.

"Tails?" Amy yelped.

"I thought Shadow and Sonic's fight was over by now, but the Blue Typhoon isn't working. What's going on?"

"The idiots tied." Rouge explained.

"What?"

"Yeah, so we're stuck here…"

"Tails, is Miroku..?" Sango couldn't finish, but Tails knew what she meant and shook his head. The monk had still not awakened from the poison he had received during the second exam.

Cloud was looking at the balcony, where Sephiroth resided. His sharp eyes were closed as he stood propped up against the wall, waiting.

"We don't have any other choice."

"What? Cloud, you shouldn't be saying…" Tails said weakly.

"If Ezi doesn't even try, we'll be stuck here, probably forever."

"But if she does try, there's a chance Sephiroth will kill her and we'll still be stuck here! You want that on your conscience?" Knuckles chided.

"Everyone." On the steps beside them were Sonic, Shadow and Ezi. Sonic had a bandage on his cheek, and he was grimacing; all three of them looked serious.

"My match is next." She said.

"Ezi, no!" Amy insisted.

"Sephiroth is too powerful, please Ezi." Sango pleaded. "Everyone here understands if you forfeit, that was the plan from the beginning."

The crowd was growing louder, demanding for Sasuke or another match to begin.

Genma looked out at the spectators, and then made his announcement:

"Sasuke's match will continue to be postponed, for now the next match will commence."

They were booing and cried out in upset.

Ezi looked around. "This is it…"

"Ezi, don't do this!" Amy yelled.

"You could get hurt real badly!" Cream cried.

"Everyone, I need you… to put your trust in me, okay? I know I was weak before and almost always needed to be rescued; but not this time. I've changed and I've been preparing for this a long time."

"Ezi…" Kagome was speechless, they all were.

"I'll be fine!" She gave them a large grin. "I care about you all, and I wouldn't be here if it wasn't for all of you, so let me return the favor, please."

Sephiroth was walking out onto the arena, near Genma.

"Don't worry, you can count on me!" She gave them a thumbs-up. It reminded Sonic of himself. She was obviously scared, but she acted tough and happy so not to worry them. He did that all the time.

"Good luck, kid." Sonic gave her thumb-up back.

"Ezi, if I had it my way I wouldn't let you fight at all." Cloud said. "But, you're right, we'll just have to trust you."

"Thank you."

"If things get rough out there, though, I'm throwing in the towel."

"Please, don't interrupt the match! No matter what happens! I can do this, got it?"

"Good luck, Ezi." Sakura said in the seat above them. She nodded and disappeared, landing effortlessly into the arena across from Sephiroth. For a second her ankles felt weak; her body was sweaty and light, carrying an air of uncertainty and tension behind her as she stood tall facing him.

The kages observed the match begin from above.

"It is a good thing we have so many matches so Sasuke can show up, hopefully he gets here soon." He paused, observing Ezi and Sephiroth. "Though, I am looking forward to seeing this match as well."

"Yes. They both performed rather skillfully in the preliminaries." The Hokage recalled.

"Right… I just hope this battle doesn't get too intense." Sora said worriedly. He was still trying to keep his cool, pretending to be the Harekage, or the leader of their pretend village. Still, he was inwardly quivering at the possibility his friend would be destroyed by the likes of the platinum match: the One Winged Angel.

At the moment, Sephiroth looked as normal as he could. No dark wing was protruding from his back, and he had in the usual dark clothes and long sheathed sword at his side. His eyes were a pale mix of blue and green, and his pupils were sharp like a feline's. His long silver hair brushed back in the calm wind, exposing the dull look on his face. Despite the lack of his wing, he still looked far from being human.

Ezi was much smaller in comparison. Granted, she wasn't a short person, but an average height and lean. Not to mention, she lacked any armor, wearing only her usual black tank top, her khaki shorts, and braces on her ankles and wrists; her flat ebony hair was pulled back into a ponytail, with her sun headband tied to her forehead. Her olive skin lightened at the sun overhead, and her green eyes shown with viscous intent towards her opponent.

"Booo, we want a refund!" The crowd continued to rant and rave.

"We came to see Sasuke's match!"

"Hurry up and bring Sasuke's fight!"

"We don't want to see anymore lame rounds!"

Some obnoxious people threw crumbled up paper and trash at them from above. Neither of them moved from lack of concern.

"Alright, settle down!" Genma snapped, sounding more furious then before. "If this match could not progress, then you won't even get to see Sasuke's match, because he would be disqualified! You should be grateful they're doing their round early! So you can keep throwing your vegetables, or you can pipe down and enjoy the match!"

The crowd hummed to a low muttering, until they were just whispers and silence.

"I thought so." He said triumphantly.

"Thank you." Ezi felt some relief with less pressure from the audience.

"Yeah-yeah, they were just getting on my nerves. So, are you both ready?"

That was a question that was impossible to answer.

"Indeed, I am ready." Sephiroth nodded, and Ezi nodded as well.

"Then, let the match begin."


	21. Scroll 12: Ezi vs The One Winged Angel

You guys rock! Thank you for the reviews so far! Now its time for the epic battle (besides Gaara and Sasuke's) of the third exam!

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 **Scroll 12: Ezi vs The One Winged Angel**

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Heaven's Dark Harvenger.

The One-Winged Angel.

Sephiroth.

Whatever you called him, he was still the most notorious thing to have ever existed on the planet Midgar. Maybe, in the entire universe.

Sephiroth was born on Midgar, and his childhood and life was fairly normal. He was raised by adopted parents, as his mother supposedly died at childbirth. His real mother, Lucricia Crescent, was actually a former scientist of Shinra, who had used experiments on her unborn child using the Jenova cells. Jenova was a specimen that crash landed into Midgar a while back, attempting to destroy the planet in a particular way. Once Shinra got their hands on Jenova, they began to run all kinds of experiments with the alien matter. Of course, Sephiroth did not know any of this while he was growing up and living his successful life. He became Shinra's best first class soldier, an elite crew of men and women pumped with mako in order to become supernatural. By being trained with this injected in them, with superhuman abilities, First Class shoulders were on top, and Sephiroth was the best of the best. Everyone wanted to be a hero like him.

Cloud Strife looked up to Sephiroth. He wanted to grow up for the day that he himself would became a soldier and worked along side Sephiroth.

They had a mission in a town called Nibelheim, together, and that was where Sephiroth eventually realized his true identity and developed a malicious purpose for himself. He went crazy, slaughtering the entire town and setting it ablaze. He returned to the research lab in the mountains nearby where he found what was left of his 'mother' Jenova. It was said that he was pronounced dead after he jumped into a boiling pool of macco energy with the severed head of Jenova in hand, but he and his many clones being manipulated by Jenova were seen years later, and Cloud and his comrades discovered that he was attempting to merge with the lifestream of the planet in order to destroy it and make it his vessel to travel through the universe, just as Jenova had attempted years before him.

During his attempt to destroy the planet, he slaughtered many people, whether they were in his way or not. The terrible things he had committed, and have yet to commit, were still horrifying to anyone who knew him.

Sephiroth. The dark harbinger meant to destroy the world.

Cloud Strife, was the only man alive to have ever defeated him, and Sora nearly got killed when he battled him in the royale on Mount Olympus. But other then that, no simple being could defeat him and his powers of Jenova. What was worse now was that after he annihilated Cloud in the chunin exams preliminaries, it seemed he had become quicker and agile than ever before—not even Cloud was prepared for his strength.

It was likely that the Sephiroth standing before her was just a clone, survived somehow across the galaxy, just like all the Sephiroths that kept appearing on Cloud's journey for the truth before he killed Sephiroth's real body. But even so, with a physical body and memories intact, it was still the deadly Sephiroth they had all come to know.

This was it.

The arena they were in could be her grave or her salvation. They were surrounded by people of all kinds from the union villages from the land of shinobi they had been bound to. A man in a mask, vigilant and villainous, watched from the crowd. Naruto and Shikamru were observing beside the sand ninja in the contestant balcony. The kages, Sora in included, with Inuyasha alongside him, waited tensely for the battle to start. All of Ezi's friends, from Sonic to Cloud Strife, were mixed in the crowd to watch the extravagant round begin.

Gekko stepped back, meaning he had allowed the round to commence.

"Ezi, was it?" Sephiroth tilted his head, starting the match off with a question.

"If you don't know what my name is, you're about to." She tried to sound courageous, but he was already laughing lightly. He slowly crouched down and put his hands on his Masamune's grip, the long swift sword he had slain so many with.

"I think I may you know already."

Before she could calculate what that meant, he swung at her. Silver met crystal, and Ezi pushed back on the heavy impact on her Phantom Gem that had appeared in her hands. The sound of the swords clanging was like a sharp bird crying out in agony, and it echoed with every time they clashed. She clenched her blade with a firm strength, but the swaying and careful focus on footwork was just like in training, or when she had gone on certain missions and fought real monsters and men. She felt light, even if she was swinging swords against the First Class soldier, Sephiroth.

"Whoa, he's fast!" Shippo commented.

"At least Ezi is able to keep up and block him, I didn't think she'd be fast enough, to be honest." Knuckles added.

"Come on, Ezi! You can do it!" Amy called out.

The three Kages were observing from high above as well.

"My, this is a sword fight if I ever saw it." Sarutobi commented. "There aren't very many _samurai_ around these days."

"Uh, yes. Well, as I said, before, we've been in hiding for a long, long time. Old traditions are not that foreign to us." Sora enlightened. Inuyasha nodded, impressed that Sora was coming up with stories so easily.

"Its true that while blade to blade fighting is entertaining to watch, there are few samurai around for a reason. They do not bat well against Ninjutsu." The Kazekage pointed out. "I'm interested in seeing how your sword fighters differ from the traditions, Harekage."

Inuyasha glowered at the man. The situation was delicate enough without having to hear comments from the indulged sand leader.

Sephiroth was following a pattern: he would saunter around in a circle, then leapt into the air towards her with one swing for her roll away from, or block with her Gem.

"He did this pattern to me in Coliseum." Sora said to Inuyasha. "He's scanning her abilities, and he won't show his full strength until she gives him something."

"Like what?"

"He's probably waiting to see if she's worthy somehow…" He rubbed his chin, recalling the fight. "…Oh! I bet once she can strike him he'll turn up the heat!"

"Great, she hasn't even done that yet." Inuyasha drawled. "This is hopeless."

The crowd watched in silence as Ezi dodged and blocked every one of his swings. He hopped through the air like he had wings, gliding effortlessly over her and behind her, then one foul lunge at a time to try and cut her.

 _He is so much faster than this; he's just toying with me!_ She thought _. What do I have to do to make this progress?_

She was nervous. She thought about all the hard work and training for years she had done with Kega sensei, but that still didn't seem to be enough if all she could do was defend.

"Watch out." Someone said, probably Sephiroth mocking her. She realized what the voice meant when she tripped in one of the holes that had been made in a previous fight. Sephiroth took the moment to swing at her from behind, but she twisted her legs fast enough to turn and block his Masamune. He jumped back and she took the moment to adjust herself, and then hop out of the hole, facing him.

She felt dizzy; the air was unbearably cold suddenly, and it made her numb to her senses for a second, causing more concern in her thoughts that she was not ready for another strike.

She was not ready to do this. What had she been thinking?

The crowd seemed to notice as well.

"Man, its obvious who's gonna win." A man in the audience said.

"She should just forfeit, that guy seems way too advanced to be just a genin." A woman said to her other girlfriends.

"I wouldn't want to be her! How embarrassing."

"Quit playing around, finish it already!"

All of her friends looked around them at the cruel faces and negative comments.

"She's like a block of ice out there. What do we do?" Rouge asked them.

"COME ON EZI!" Their eyes turned to the loudest spectator, Naruto, who was east of them at the contestant's balcony.

"I'VE SEEN YOU FIGHT WITH WAY MORE CONFIDENCE! DON'T LET THIS CREEP GET TO YOU AND SHOW 'EM WHAT YOU GOT!"

"Naruto…" Sakura said nostalgically.

"YEAH, WHAT HE SAID!" Sonic yelled suddenly, belting his voice over the railing. "YOU'VE COME TO FAR TO GIVE UP NOW!"

There was possibly that she could die, but the reassurance in their voice seemed to ring an alternative outcome. She took a deep breath in and out, the humming in her ears and the chill dissipated, and she was warm with life again.

Sephiroth lunged for her again, the pattern all too familiar, and she ran towards him. He swung his sword in a horizontal sway, and she slid and ducked under the strike, taking the initiative to swing her sword at him. Sephiroth did not finish his full swing, seeing her slide under his arms, and he leapt to the left, avoiding the strike, but barely. She stood up quickly with her Phantom Gem pointing at him, the sun reflecting off an exultant blue. He looked down at his waist; she had cut through his black clothes, and his pale flesh contrasted against the dark uniform. He looked back up and his face was bemused.

Then, he was gone.

The audience and whispered and wondered where he could have disappeared to without reappearing so obviously.

"Ezi, he teleported!" Cloud yelled out. "You know what to do!"

She knew this trick too. There had to be some change in the wind and air around her, but she would sense it and be able to see where he was coming from.

Sephiroth was in the air behind her all too quickly, and he slashed across her figure.

Yet, suddenly she was gone too. She vanished in the blink of an eye, and then reappeared behind him. Her stance wasn't quick enough for a harsh blow, so she just kicked him forward in the back. He was able to catch himself from falling, but he did not look pleased in the slightest when he faced her.

"How did she do that?" Inuyasha yelled. Sora's jaw was dropped, and he had no explanation.

"Are they using teleportation jutsu? I haven't seen that in ages." The Hokage sounded astounded, clarifying that the technique was rare.

Sephiroth was gone again, and at her side, swinging away. He spun around four times consecutively, like a dancer, twirling with harsh collision against her weapon. She was pushed back, her heels digging into the dirt, and then she vanished again. Sephiroth eyes scanned to the right, and suddenly she was there. He blocked her wild swings as she remained balanced in the air, landing effortlessly and preparing to strike again. He blocked and jumped far away from her.

"Wow! Ezi could teleport too?" Shippo said excitedly. "I didn't see her use it in the fight against Aritob!"

"She didn't have that ability then." Cloud almost sounded upset. "She learned it in the last month."

"What? How?" Amy wondered.

"Why are you here?" Ezi decided to ask, and it echoed across the field. When their swords weren't clashing. It must have been very simple for the audience to hear their conversations. "What business do you have in this world?"

"Business?" His eyes widened. "I have no business with this world in particular. I am simply following Mother's intentions."

"Mother? You mean, Jenova?"

"Mother is the life and death of all planets. It just so happens I plan to use this one as my vessel across the universe."

"You're insane." She shook her head. "Maybe it is a good thing we got stuck here, so we could stop you!"

"We?" He said, his eyes widening again for a flash moment. "Little girl… you seem to be the only one who can even keep up with me. Not even Cloud is that strong anymore. When it comes to stopping me, you're all alone in this… none of your pathetic friends can help you now."

She didn't know what to say to that. It rang some truth; her friends couldn't interfere in the match, thankfully. She didn't have to worry about him harming them, at least.

"Oh, but it wasn't a coincidence you were trapped here either; I did plan to destroy all of you with this planet when I gained Mother's true power, but I have a new goal now."

"What?"

The other's overheard him as well.

"Did he just say he was the reason for us being trapped here? He's the reason we can't leave?" Kagome exclaimed.

"That bastard." Sango added in a fury.

"How did you go about doing that?" Ezi asked him. "How did you trap us here?"

"Wouldn't you like to know?" He pointed his long sword towards her, killing intent returned. "I suppose you'll have to defeat me to find out."

The fight continued. Both of them had a serious expression as they clashed with one another effortlessly. Every swing seemed fatal from both contenders, yet for some reason they never landed a blow. They were both inhumanly fast, avoiding and teleporting on a whim, as if it were rehearsed or had been practiced for this performance. Ezi could feel the burning now. She wanted to win. She charged at him again and he raised one arm up.

"Figara." He said plainly. Ezi was right in front of him when four thick pillars of fire surrounded him. The heat was so immense the audience near them could feel it from above.

"Oh no, Ezi!" Knuckles cried out.

"She's been burned to a crisp! I can't look!" Shippo buried his head under Kagome's chin, whose shoulder he was accustomed to perching on.

When the walls of flames cleared, there was an orb of swirling fire in front of Sephiroth. It _booshed_ forward, like a fireball, into him. The ball bounced back, and he spun around a few times to relinquish his clothes from burning. He stood there calmly, observing the bouncing orb. It rolled around him slowly, like a predator.

"What is that thing?" Naruto wondered.

"It's a shield." Sonic was suddenly behind him and Shikamru, approaching to view the fight with them.

"A shield?"

"I have them all over in my world. There are regular green shields, and water shields; I used them depending on what land I would be zooming through. Somehow, Ezi must have used one."

"That thing is Ezi?" Naruto realized. "Wouldn't she be hot in there?"

"No inmate; it's a shield, so the heat and flames on it are only going outward, no matter how she moves around. Its really quite useful."

Cloud was talking to the others in the audience:

"Sephiroth won't be able to harm with that Figara Wall now. As long as she's protected by her own fire, it looks like that attack is useless.

Sephiroth watched the fireball impatiently. He created another wall of pillars, but the orb knocked into his chest, and he ceased the fire attack.

"To be able to summon all that fire without so much as a hand sign…" The Kazekage was amazed, "that is some very advanced Ninjutsu, if that's what it even is."

Sonic was smiling as he looked down at the fight. "The only problem with that shield, is it does well against the elements its for, but if it hit by anything else, it pops."

As he said this, Sephiroth swung with fury at the orb, and even though it jumped back, his long sword was able to cut through the fiery bubble, and it vanished, revealing Ezi's slender form lunging away in its place. She slid on the floor, catching her balance and blocking several more of his fast swinging attacks. They parried and lunged back and forth, appearing and reappearing in different spots throughout the arena. They had appeared over Genma's head, much to his startle, and then vanished again.

"I should get off the arena for now." He said to himself. "It looks like I could get in the way of this incredible fight." Genma leapt onto the wall, running into the contender's balcony beside everyone else.

Then, Ezi and Sephiroth were across the arena from one another, catching their breath, or at least taking a break.

"Oh my," He said, smirking, "Where did you acquire this strength, little girl? Surely, Cloud didn't teach you all of this?"

"None of your business! But for your information, Cloud didn't want to help me!"

"Oh, I see..." He titled his head up to look overhead, probably in the area Cloud was sitting in. "I wonder if he refused for the reason I'm thinking of?"

"What reason?" She demanded, and it echoed across the field.

"Oh, I'm sure you don't know yet." He stood up straight, as if to say he wasn't going to strike again just yet.

"How is she doing?" Beside the group, Kega was standing on the staircase next to them. Her brown stringy hair was a bit longer, reaching her shoulders, and she had on the usual maroon dress and boots.

"Not you again!" Knuckles complained. "Let me guess; you trained her for this match too, didn't you?"

"Oh, the Echidna may have some IQ after all."

He growled, but didn't retort to the insult.

"Kega, how did you train her so quickly?" Cloud stood from his seat so he could see her. "Even if she had years, Sephiroth is way too advanced, so how..?"

"Oh, it wasn't easy." She began. She folded her arms, and watched the fast fight below as she continued:

"Well, as you know I can travel to worlds on a whim. Its not on my own wish, though. I have a relic that helps me control time and space."

"What relic would that be?" Shadow demanded.

"Ah ah, it's a secret. Anyway, Ezi has one too, I just helped her figure out how to use it properly. She used it to travel between her own world, Earth, and to the animal world, Mobius, now she can use it for battle too."

"Chaos Control." Shadow said. "The black chaos emerald in her heart…"

"Exactly. She was afraid of the power of the dark emerald, but her heart is pure enough to use it. So, I simply showed her how. After the preliminaries, she went with me to a distant galaxy, where an old friend of mine helped her train. We worked on her for years; but I guess only a month went by in this world."

"How are you manipulating time like that?"

"I'm not manipulating time, I'm simply traveling through it. _We went to distant worlds in the future, or to a long time ago, in galaxies far-far away_ , where Ezi gained hands on experiences, life and death training, and of course, practiced and prepared for this fight particularly. She already knew her enemies abilities, she just needed more time to train to combat against him."

They could see it now; the faint black glint that whipped in the air for not even a mili-second, every time Ezi teleported. It was the power of the black chaos emerald.

Sephiroth landed on the ground, away from her. His hand began to glow a light pink radiating a violet light. To Ezi it looked tranquil and ominous at the same time.

"Sin harvester…" He said, and began making some kind of sign in the air, swinging his hand around in a certain motion.

"Ezi, stop him!" Sora cried out.

"What is that, what's he doing?" Inuyasha asked.

"It's a spell! He used it on me in the Coliseum! It drains your energy completely, I could barely move… then he strikes!"

"Damn it!" They watched as Ezi's Phantom Gem shifted into a thin bow and arrow made of crystal; the sharp end of her dagger became the arrow, and she adjusted it in her grip to aim at him.

"Descend, Heartless Angel."

The spell had been completed. A foreboding halo appeared over her head abruptly, and then a light imploded into her body. She grunted out in pain, and in a moment she was exhausted, falling to her knees.

"I… can't… move…"

Sephiroth was running for her. He was upon her in seconds.

"C-Curaga." A large yellow plant soared above her head, and she teleported just before he could slash into her. His Masamune dug into the ground, and he had to yank it out. He turned around for her, until she appeared again and they were slashing and teleporting again.

"Phew, that was close!" Amy said, clenching her chest.

"I don't get it… why did you go through all the work to train her? Why are you helping us?" Sango asked Kega.

"Hm, I suppose from your perspective, it would seem that I've done you all a great favor, but I did all this for me. A thank you would be nice, though; I did create a warrior powerful enough to defeat the One-Winged Angel."

"Your cockiness is rubbing me the wrong way." Shadow said.

"Get over it, little life form. I'm stronger then even you. Which, I guess means Ezi could even defeat all of you if she's at this level, correct?"

"What's that supposed to mean?" Knuckles demanded.

"Well, I'm just saying you all haven't been supportive of her, right? I mean, I did have to train her, Cloud didn't even want to, and I wonder why that is…"

"You're not going to make us feel bad! We didn't want Ezi to get hurt, that's it!" Knuckles pressed.

"And, you didn't believe she couldn't be harmed? Your lack of faith in her is… disturbing. Especially for labeling yourselves as her 'friends'."

Ezi screamed, and it drew their attention to the battle. Sephiroth had managed to cut into her left arm. It wasn't a deep cut, but a heavy amount of blood trickled down her arm.

"You bleed like a human, maybe I was wrong about you…"

"What are you talking about?" She held her crystal sword up with her good, right arm, as her left arm dangled like a piece of cloth. "You bleed; you're human too!"

"I'm beyond humanity. You are too, little girl. You just have to embrace your destiny."

He was saying things that weren't making sense. She shook her left arm, adjusting to the pain, and then charged. They clashed back and forth again.

Shadow dropped his folded arms and looked to Kega. "You still didn't answer my question. How does training Ezi help you?"

Kega folded her arms, keeping a straight posture and looking into the arena with a serious glow.

"…Its to keep my legacy. I won't last forever, so I had to share my powers of a Sorceress to another Sorceress."

"What?" Some of them bellowed out in unison.

Ezi was spinning in the air, and her blade only cut through a few long strands of Sephiroth's hair as he darted away, but she felt confident.

"Ezi is a Sorceress?"

Kega rolled her eyes to the echidna's question. "Duh."

"Amy?" Sakura whispered to her, and the pink hedgehog leaned in. "What's the big deal? What is her being a sorceress have to do with anything?"

Amy kept her eyes spinning around to the intense fight, but she replied.

"A Sorceress that Kega is referring to is very special. Apparently, they are humans that can harness all kinds of power through their experiences in life."

"They can harness _all_ of the powers," Kega overheard them. "and can use it to their whim. It takes time and training, so no Sorceror or Sorceress has ever found and learned all the powers of the universe, but we get pretty close. Anyway, our kind only appears every hundred years or so. I am from the past, the feudal era, and Ezi from the present, so I had an opportunity probably no other of our kind has ever had: to train one of our own, and show them their true potential as a Sorceress."

"How do you know Ezi is a Sorceress?" Kagome asked.

"She wields the Phantom Gem, her crystal sword; only our kind can do that. When the Sorcerer of that era dies, it sleeps until the next one is born."

"So that's why only Aritob and Ezi could hold it." Knuckles realized. "So, you taught Ezi all of the skills she needed to defeat Sephiroth?"

"Do I need to repeat myself with you? We traveled to different galaxies and worlds, and she learned what she needed to."

"Sounds complicated."

"It was, but that can be explained another time."

As the match progressed, it seemed that they were evenly matched. Now that they knew she was a Sorceress, it seemed that her talents displayed so far were more impressive than they had realized.

"Yeah, you got this!" Naruto cheered again. "She can do it, right Sonic?" He turned to his blue friend, but he was gone. Naruto scanned the crowd around him, and could see Sonic waving from far away, standing where his friends had been sitting.

Ezi gave one more swing, then she stepped back. She was sweating, tired; the use of all the teleporting and constant fencing had used up a lot of her energy. Sephiroth descended onto the earth softly, like a feather.

"Are you becoming afraid to fight me?" He asked, mockingly.

"Are… are you?"

"Don't act so tough. Putting up a front while your tired isn't wise; you should know your limits. Perhaps you could push your limits, though, if you gained your true purpose."

"What are you talking about, man?" Her sword dragged onto the dirt as she slouched and rolled her eyes. "No one gets your crazy, psycho language. If you have something to say, then say it! Stop trying to be all mystical!"

Sephiroth's shoulders motioned slightly when he hummed a chuckle softly. He tilted his head as he glared forward to his opponent.

"You're so lost, in the dark. You don't know the truth, so you can't embrace who you truly are."

She growled in irritation, and lifted her sword up again. She charged at him, and they both moved into the air. Their blades crossed together, and they were pushing back against the ground to throw the other off. Their faces were close enough to each other, but Ezi could not look into his sharp eyes.

"I mean, what you are is someone like me."

"I… I'm not gonna fall for that darkness and light crap! You're not gonna trick me!"

"The only one whose been tricking you, is sitting in the crowd up there."

"That's not true!" She assumed he was referring to Cloud. "Grivaga!" She successfully pushed back against him, using the magical force under feet to push him off balance, but the force wasn't strong enough, and Sephiroth recovered, gripping his sword firmly in both hands with a stance. He swayed forward, and she managed to block, but the impact threw her back. She hadn't noticed the wall behind her until her back slammed into it, knocking the wind out of her. She heaved forward, seeing in a blurry haze that Sephiroth was coming, and she tried to recover. With a sway of his hand, he pushed her sword aside, stabbing his own blade into her.

A pitiful, agonizing scream.

He had only stabbed her on the shoulder blade above her left pictorials, but the pain was excruciating; like a cramp that didn't pulsate, and stuck in her muscles and blood like glue. Desperately, she pried at the long blade, but she couldn't pull it out with Sephiroth holding it still.

Cloud was ready to step in. He jumped up from his seat and his boot was over the railing when Kega grabbed him by his scarf and yanked him back.

"You fool! It's not fatal, let her finish or you're all be stuck here forever!" She chided. There were a lot of reasons Cloud wanted to hop down and help, but he knew she was right. He staggered to sit back down quietly and watch.

"Sephiroth, let her go!" It was all he could do or say.

Sephiroth turned his head to the side, as if to look at Cloud in the crowd behind him.

"I am letting her go… I'm releasing her to the truth."

"What… what are you-?" She was trying to get through the pain, taking sharp breaths and remaining calm, but her legs kicked around like she was choking, gasping for air.

"Sephiroth, _don't."_ Cloud pleaded.

"Cloud what's going on?" Sonic interrogated. "What is he talking about?"

Ezi's curiosity heightened. "W-what does he mean? Don't, what?"

Sephiroth took his time replying. He seemed to relish the moment more then Ezi expected this cold, hard killer to do.

"You may be a Sorceress, but how do you think your body can hold all of these different abilities? Your ability to control your multiple powers, to clarify, is a gift."

"A gift?" She said weakly. The blood was rushing to the wound, she could feel it press against the cold steel of his blade inside her flesh.

He left his sword in her arm, as he walked towards her. The blade dropped slightly, and she yelped at the sting in her arm.

He cupped her chin with his black-gloved hand, forcing her to look up into his beautiful, neutral eyes.

"…A gift from Mother."

"J..Jenova?"

Heaven's little gift to Midgar. Years ago the meteor holding the being called mother crashed into the planet, bringing a certain energy to the world.

"Only a few can control Mother's power, or their bodies reject it violently. You were able to accept Mother, _sister of mine."_

"What did he just say?" Sonic had heard him, but he didn't believe it.

Sephiroth stood up, and suddenly, he was floating up in the air. The drapery around his clothes stretched out from his back to the right side of him, appearing at first like a second long black hand; then it had feathers. It was his black wing, the symbol that the great Sephiroth had fallen from grace to darkness, embracing his true ambitions to destroy worlds.

"You're lying! I've never been injected with Jenova cells, so I couldn't be like you!"

"You don't recall? Well, I know you were. I saw it in you when I saw you again in the Olympus Coliseum, but you had not gained enough power to face me yet. I'm sure Cloud noticed it then too."

"Again? Cloud… what's he talking about?" She asked desperately. "What does he mean by again?"

"Allow me to help you regain your memories…" Sephiroth pointed his hand at her, and their flick of light that surrounded her head. She felt a throbbing pain there, like it was going to explode. It only took a second for the memories to recover, but it had felt like a lifetime as she recalled the memories she had lost for so long.

Her parents were pronounced dead on earth from a car accident, but that wasn't true at all. They never even found their bodies.

It all made sense now. It was all connected.

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TO BE CONTINUED!

Yikes! For a long time probably when I was going into high school I had all of these ideas. It feels good to present them to all of you now. Thanks again for the reviews so far!


	22. Scroll 13: The Nebelheim Massacre

_**Thanks for the reviews so far! Sorry if this story seems to be getting off track, but I always wanted to get out the idea of my OC fighting in the exams; this was whole arc was one of favorites in Naruto ever, as well as the appearance of Itachi and the Tsunade Retrieval Arc. Anyway, this is a flashback episode; so you do not have to read if you don't want, but explains Ezi's missing past. It also is related to a major plot of FINAL FANTASY 7, so spoiler warning! Enjoy!**_

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 _Scroll 13: The Nebelheim Massacre_

 _Elizabeth's parents were scientists. Granted, she didn't understand much of their work, since she was so little, she only knew that they were always busy. Currently, they were living on Midgar, and their job contracted with Shinra took them to a small town called Nebelheim, outside of the main city. Elizabeth had traveled many times with her parents, but this time she had become lost._

 _The girl had wandered too far out of the town, and there was sand storm. A man in a scary mask and armor picked her up and brought her to the damp space of some sort of large vehicle. She could hear the roaring of the engine as she gained her consciousness, her face was wet from the attempt of her rescuers trying to clear her eyes of all the sand. She looked around the dark car, and could see strange figures all over. She screamed out and ran to the nearest corner, crouching with her head in her lap._

 _"Oh man… Cloud, you scared her." An enthusiastic voice rang out. A man's voice she had never heard before._

 _"But, I'm the one who saved her."_

 _"I guess all these SOLDIER's masks are kinda scary lookin'." The man commented again._

 _"Hmph. Waste of time. We're on a mission, we shouldn't be stopping on the way to help others." This was different voice, and his was calm, cool._

 _"Come on, hero! Is that anyway to talk?" The first man walked over to her._

 _"Hey, its okay, trust me." His voice was kind, and Elizabeth poked her head up to look at him, revealing her two ponytails in her hair, her emerald green eyes, and her red sweater._

 _"Awe, you're a cutie, aren't you?" The man was crouched to her level, and he had a soft, grinning face with black spikey hair._

 _"I'm Zack. What's your name, sweetie?"_

 _She sniffled. She remembered she had been lost and she remembered the alarming storm that had she had been saved from._

 _"I'm… not supposed to talk to strangers…" She looked around, passed Zack. There were three other men in the same denim turtleneck armor, but they had knight-looking masks on. Seeing them breath heavily through the armor frightened her, and she ducked her head down again, screaming and crying._

 _"Darn it, I almost had her calm." Zack squeezed one eye shut at the noise._

 _"Will someone please, shut her up?" A harsher voice came from one of the armored men._

 _"Sephiroth, you try!" Zack insisted._

 _"No." The man retorted._

 _"Buddy, come on! Either you help out, or we're gonna hear that crying all the way to Nebelheim!"_

 _Sephiroth didn't say anything, but Elizabeth knew he was sitting in front of her when she heard his boo- heavy footsteps approach ever so slowly. The presence this time was different, less energetic. Elizabeth raised her head again, and stopped crying out, because seeing the man before her made her feel completely safe._

 _He had the most stunning bluish green eyes, prettier than any flower or light she had ever seen. His clothes were dark, but his features were warm, and unyielding. His long, white and grey hair shimmered, even though there barely any light for it to reflect off of. He was like a true savior, some kind of hero, maybe._

 _"Are you okay, little girl?" He asked. He seemed to be forcing the kind words out, like it was difficult for him. The room was silent, stirring with a slight bump here and there from the driving._

 _She reached out instinctually and petted his hair, brushing her fingers through it with ease. She smiled and giggled, repeating the notion for a while._

 _"Oh man, he's got another fan already?" Zack teased from behind them. "I guess you don't get the credit for this one, Cloud."_

 _Sephiroth didn't move as he let her pet his mane of long, entrancing hair. After a moment, he wrapped his arms around her gently and picked her up. He stood up against the wall with his leg propped up, and he watched as the child continued to grab at his hair._

 _Zack was trying to stifle a laugh._

 _"Stop." Sephiroth ordered._

 _"Okay, okay, I'll stop. But dude, you do have refreshingly stylish hair. Who's your stylist?"_

 _"Just get focused before we reach Nebelheim."_

 _"Sure! By the way, didn't you say this was your hometown, Cloud?"_

 _The large vehicle finally reached the town a few minutes later. They walked towards the town square, surrounded by long rectangular buildings, blocking their view of the mountains beyond their village. To the northeast, there stood a mansion, probably the largest building in the tiny community. People gathered around to greet the heroic SOLDIERs, including two desperate parents._

 _They were an interracial couple: The wife was a tall, dark skinned woman with bushy brown hair, and the husband was a hairy blonde man with green eyes. Their lab coats swept behind them as they rushed to Sephiroth, who was holding their child._

 _"Oh, baby girl!" The woman went to take her, and Sephiroth obliged, passing her along. Elizabeth whimpered, reaching for Sephiroth's hair in the process, not seeming relieved to see her parents just yet._

 _"You're the First Class soldiers? Thank you so much for finding our daughter." The man bowed slightly._

 _"No problem." Zack said casually. "She wasn't a handful. She really likes Sephiroth here, actually."_

 _"Sephiroth, thank you." The mother said, kissing her daughter obnoxiously on her cheeks and forehead. "Why did you wander off so far this time, Ezi?"_

 _"I got lost." She said. "I'm sorry, mommy, I won't wander off far again." She looked back Sephiroth. "Can I play with dem?"_

 _"Oh, no sweetie, they are very busy people. We have to head back to the Shinra Manor anyway."_

 _"Hey, we'll be over there too!" Zack said excitedly. "Maybe we will see you around, little one."_

 _Elizabeth nodded robotically. "Bye-bye, Se-pur-ot."_

 _"Cute." Zack said, trying not to laugh again. They parted and the soldiers were greeted by Tifa. The SOLDIER named Cloud refused to take his mask off, ashamed he was not a First Class soldier like Sephiroth for her to see._

 _Sephiroth took initiative between the missions to explore the data found in the Shinra Manor, there were books about experiments and research the company had gathered so far, pertaining to the Ancients and Jenova._

 _One day, Elizabeth wandered off again while her parents were busy at work. She liked exploring, but Nebelheim was small, and too foreign to her, and boring, so it felt nice to know something as beautiful as Sephiroth was nearby. She found the literacy section in the library within the mansion. People were going in and out of the public place as if it were any regular library. She found colorful children's books she had never read before, such as the Sheep in Wolf's Clothing, and the Scorpion and the Frog. She pulled what she could from the bottom shelves, and wandered off again._

 _Sephiroth was tired from scanning so many dull pages. He sighed and rested his hand on his head, leaning against a long case of books as he read another log on the research done using Jenova's DNA. The results for most people injected were catastrophic, but how come he stood out above all the others pumped with Macco energy?_

 _"Se-pur-ot!"_

 _He lowered the book from his nose, seeing Elizabeth in front of him, standing on his boots. She barely passed his knees, looking up at him as if he were a tall tree._

 _"Stubborn child. Go back to your parents."_

 _"They workin'."_

 _"So am I… I'm sorry, I can't help you."_

 _Despite his words, she lifted up one of the children's book above her head for him to see. She didn't say anything, just blinked and stared._

 _"…What?" He finally said._

 _"Read me. Read to me."_

 _"Um, no."_

 _"Pwetty pwease? Pwease Se-pur-ot. One book, okay?"_

 _He looked back at the logbook. The numbers and small letters were spinning in his head. Perhaps he could use a break._

 _He found a nice round table for them to sit at, and she tried sitting on his lap, but he was reluctant. He plopped her on a small chair beside him and opened one of the books._

 _"The Chocobo and the Princess…" He had never even had these kinds of books read to him as a kid… how was he doomed to read such childish literature?_

 _He cleared his throat and turned the page. "Once upon a time, there lived a chocobo named Moo-Moo…" If the other soldiers saw him doing this, he would never hear the end of it. He looked at Elizabeth, ready to tell her he was already done, but she looked back with her large, sparkling green eyes, sucking on her thumb._

 _…No one was around. He could scare the little girl off, and no body would know of his cruelty…_

 _"Damn it…" He mumbled to himself. "Uh, so anyway, Moo-Moo lived on a farm, but she had a wish. She wished she could be a beautiful princess like the ones she read in the story books…" He frowned, disapprovingly. "What is this nonsense? Chocobos don't read."_

 _Elizabeth giggled at the comment. "Caw, caw!"_

 _"That's a crow."_

 _"…Oh."_

 _"…Uh, where was I?" He scanned the page with the picture of the pretty Chocobo. "Oh, here. So, Moo-Moo made a wish on a shooting star one night…" He looked at the comet across the next page and felt some sort of nostalgia, or yearning._

 _"…She wished she could become a princess and live in a castle. She felt it was her destiny…" Sephiroth read matter-of-factly to the girl, reading quietly so that nobody could hear from a far. His hushed, silky voice was soothing to her. She rested on his side as she analyzed the pages._

 _Suddenly he read one book, then two, then three. The sun was going down and he had put Elizabeth to sleep with his gentle reading. He left the children's books on the table and wrapped her in his arms. He found her parents on another end of the Manor, and they returned to their inn for the day. Sephiroth remained closed up in the basement of the Manor, trying to find some truth he had been longing for all his life._

 _People were beginning to talk that the great Sephiroth was just a bookworm. He spent all his time in Nibelheim in the basement, and Elizabeth would always find him there like clockwork. She would insist he read to her at least a story a day, or she would come in the morning and in the afternoon to have him read two books in a day. He acted annoyed at first, but then he would smile and say: "Okay, just one more book."_

 _Her mommy would read stories to her, but they were so busy now; surely, her guardian angel would be able to accomplish such things. Every time he read to her, she would cuddle up next to him or brush his hair with her fingers. This town was small, unfamiliar, but she felt some sort of safety with the angelic being._

 _But, the days grew darker. One night in the inn, her parents were arguing._

 _"Have you heard what they've been saying about him? He's probably going crazy."_

 _"I don't want to think like that, I can't!"_

 _Elizabeth covered her ears in her bed as she listened to them bicker in the other room. When her mommy walked in to check on her, she sat on the bed beside her and rubbed her cheek._

 _"Listen to me, Ezi. This is very important: tomorrow you are not to go visit Sephiroth again, okay?"_

 _"Why? What's wong? Is he sick?"_

 _"He… is just very busy. Please, don't disturb him anymore, alright?"_

 _"Okay…"_

 _Her mom looked at her for a moment, and she felt like she was in trouble for something she had not done yet._

 _"Promise me?" Her mommy affirmed._

 _"I promise."_

 _But, Elizabeth broke her promise._

 _The next day, her mommy kept an eye on her. But as the sun went down, her parental responsibilities began to wane as she had to go to wotk._

 _Elizabeth was wandering again._

 _She found one more children's book that they may have not read yet, and she went to the basement to show him the book._

 _"Se-pur-ot!" She pranced when she saw him, but he did not even turn to look at her._

 _"Go away, little girl." He warned, but his voice sounded too soft for it be a real threat._

 _"I want you to read this one, okay?" She persisted. She held up the book up to the side of him, but he still did not move. He was like a statue._

 _"I said, go away, little girl. Not today."_

 _She pouted her lip, and nudged the book into his leg. "Se-pur-ot, please? I want you to read this to me, please—"_

 _He spun around. He slapped the book out of her little hands. She raised her arms up in shock and dropped her jaw, staring at the books on the floor._

 ** _"Go. Away. Little. Girl."_** _He was being so mean, but his features lacked any emotion. "Do not disturb me again, or you will be sorry."_

 _She didn't say anything. She picked up the book quietly and darted out of there, crying softly to herself. She ran back to the inn nearby and wept on her bed all night until she fell asleep._

 _Her parents left early the next morning to get some work done, but apparently they had not gone to the Manor again. The innkeeper brought Elizabeth breakfast, and told her pleasantly that they would be gone all day, so she was to stay at the inn._

 _For most of the day, she did just that. She colored and read books, but her focus was on Sephiroth. She hated disappointing her parents, and other people she admired. She didn't understand why she had made him so angry, but she had to fix it. She drew a picture of him in crayons and wrote "I'm sorry" on the top as best as she could. That remedy usually worked on her folks when she got in trouble for things like breaking a valuable, or running away and being gone too long._

 _She hurried to the mansion as the sun was going down. The sky seemed cloudy that fateful day, and when she entered the place, the rooms were stiff and lifeless. There was no sound, not even wind, and it frightened her for some reason. She hurried by all the rooms, but then stopped._

 _There were a few people in the hall in front of her, passed out on the floor. The decor rug underneath them was stained in red._

 _Maybe she hadn't seen a dead body up to that point in her life, but she knew that's what they were. She could hear heavy footsteps coming from the other end of the hall, and she darted back towards the entrance of the Manor. The foot steps were slow, and calculating, but she felt like it was right behind her, so she slid under a pine wood dinning table beside a bar wall. On the chair in the same room was another body of a man, slouched in the chair with blood all over his chest. She must have been so excited to see Sephiroth, she did not notice the bodies in the first rooms until now._

 _She was breathing hard, but she could see the entrance to the mansion; two double doors that were slightly open. If only she had the courage to run to them._

 _The footsteps stopped. She felt like she was choking on the air, trying not to make any noise. Whatever killed these people was coming to get her—_

 _A long sword stabbed into the wood table from above, just barely missing Elizabeth's head. She screamed out as she rolled away from the thin weapon. She didn't hesitate now; she crawled forward until she was no longer under the table, then she scrambled to her feet and ran as fast as she could towards the door. There were tears on her cheeks, and she felt so hopeless; the door seemed to be harder and harder to reach every second, like she was in an endless nightmare. She screamed out as she hopped through the doorway; no, not hop—something was lifting her up from the flesh on her back. It pulled through diagonally, and the immediate amount of pain it brought was like when she got boo-boos, but it was all across her back. She couldn't scream anymore the pain was so shocking, and she flew forward from the impact of whatever had sliced into her back._

 _A woman nearby screamed and she recognized it. It was her mommy's. She wanted to reply, tell her she was okay, but then her face was colliding with the dirt, and the pain all over her body forced her to remain frozen._

 _Her mommy's screams were horrific. She had never heard her sound so scared before, so frightened. The monster that was killing people may kill her too, and suddenly crayons and books and exploring didn't matter anymore. She wanted to protect her mommy, or at least keep her safe._

 _It was hard for Elizabeth to comprehend what was happening. She could hear the more people yelling, but her mommy was hovering over her, protecting her. Her father was cut down, trying to hold the monster off, then it sliced her mommy's neck. She collapsed onto Elizabeth's already aching back, but she still couldn't scream. She could feel the wet, warm blood from her mommy spread across her back and limbs, trickling into the ground, mixing with her own. She could hear the whoosh of an immense fire, and the crackling of wood and burning flesh and buildings all around her. They had just been outside of the mansion, so there was nothing to drag the fire to them. Still, it was becoming difficult to breathe._

 _"M…Mom..my?"_

 _No response. She looked down to see her father was lying face down beside them, and he looked like the dead people in the manor._

 _"Dadd…y…."_

 _No; they were her parents, not people that could just be killed. This couldn't be real. Above her father, from a distance, were some stone steps to a higher ground. The steps and grass and falling wood was drenched in hot, wispy orange flames that shook high into the sky. One figure was standing there, tall and dark; his beautiful silver hair was uncanny._

 _Sephiroth._

 _His long sword was drenched in the blood of her parents, and probably hundreds more. He had caused the fire. He had ruined everything._

 _He took one long look around the area, as if proud of his destruction, then he turned slowly, vanishing into the flames._

 _She must have been lying there for a day._

 _If she got up, it would be real, and her parents really would be dead. Shinra lackeys came in and washed out the fire, picked up bodies and gathered whatever information they could on Sephiroth. They were in quarantine masks, so they scared Elizabeth when they hauled her parent's bodies away. She tried to scream out with her hoarse throat, but they knocked her out._

 _Maybe after that was when she was injected with Jenova cells. She remembered being in a white room, then being a laboratory trapped in a tube filled with water; she couldn't breath, and they stabbed her with a thousand needles, day in and day out._

 _She didn't know how long she had been there before she finally snapped._

 _She was in the water tube again, feeling like she was drowning in a pool, when she felt a foreign energy inside of her burst. The realization of the horror that day in Nebelheim had finally hit her, and all she knew now was that she wanted to escape, to go home._

 _Her eyes glowed, and she desperately wished to be home with her parents—yes. Maybe if she could wish herself home on a shooting star, everything would be okay again._

 _The Shinra scientists probably wouldn't be able to explain how she teleported out of that tube to this day. She wisped herself across the galaxy, back to her real home on earth. She got close enough to her house, but she reappeared on a dark street. She had almost been run over by a car, but it skidded out of the way and the people inside the vehicle took her to a hospital. They found records of her using her DNA, but they could never find her parents._

 _Elizabeth could not remember anything. Maybe it was the brain protecting itself from shock, but she never recalled the events of that night in Nebelheim. They put her in the foster care system, where she was raised by Monica and had a foster brother named Luke for many years._

 _Until the day she wished on a shooting star again. She wished for her heroes to be real, and her glorious adventure continued._

 _She had not remembered any of it until now._

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 _the rest of the main story will continue! Until next time!_


	23. Scroll 14: The Final Countdown

Okay! We're back on the main storyline! I hope you're enjoying it so far... I know a sonic/kh/ff7/Naruto/oc may be a bit much, but this is what I envisioned as a kid! All of my certain favorite games/Tv shows coming together! Thanks for the reviews too; you rock!

Anyway I'm sure Ive titled other stories as "The Final Countdown", but I got that rock 80s song stuck in my head every time when I'm close to ending a story. So here we go:

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Scroll 14: The Final Countdown

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Ezi was staring forward, the metal sword still in her arm. Sephiroth observed her like a science subject, waiting for her to say something. The crowd around them in the arena was silent.

"Do you see now, Ezi? I thought it was just coincidence you were still alive at first, but now I see… Mother chose you."

"You killed my parents." She said flatly.

"They were just humans. If you had lived a normal life with them, you and I wouldn't be here. It's destiny."

"I've heard enough about destiny! You can throw your destiny crap at me all you want, but you're just a murderer! You killed my mom and dad, and all those defenseless people! You killed Aeries too!"

"All of them were trying to stop Mother's legacy." He tried to explain. "But now, I'm not alone in this anymore."

"What?"

"Like I said before, I decided to plummet you and your friends to your death on this miserable, war stricken planet. But when I figured out who you were, that you carried Mother's blessing, I knew you were meant for something greater."

"What the heck are they talking about?" Naruto asked the question to no one in particular. He looked over at Sonic and his friends from afar, and they seemed as puzzled as he did.

Sephiroth raised her by her chin again. "Aren't you tired of the suffering that comes with this life? Humans die so easily. Mother sought out to cleanse the worlds, to rid of them of their sorrow, and pain, and doubts. The conflict of all these emotions drives planets to destroy themselves."

"No…"

"Come on, little girl… haven't you felt alone for so long? Never knowing the truth?"

"No! My friends! They always kept me happy!"

"Surely, you friends did not train you. Did they even think you could stand up to a being like me? No. They doubted you."

She looked passed Sephiroth, up to where her friends may have been sitting.

"No…"

"Yes. They didn't help you when you were in danger all those times, they were just showing off their abilities, pretending to be the type of hero you thought you could never be. In the end, you had to go in search for your true power yourself, and look, it brought you back to me, sister of mine."

What he said had rang some truth, but she couldn't believe it all. She felt something pulsing in her chest; not her heart, but something else.

"Cloud doesn't understand. He got rid of his blessing, and now he fights against something that can't be stopped. Not only that, he kept the truth secret from you, afraid that this moment would happen. Look at me; even if you defeat me here, I'll come back. I always do."

She felt hopeless. He was right; he would return, and hurt more people again.

"Give in. Join me. With you at my side, we can conquer all worlds and end their pain and suffering." He rose, and raised his arm out to her.

She wasn't sure what to do. She could join him, to betray him eventually… but, what if she liked the power? What if she became insane like him?

She reached for his hand, and they touched. A black energy poured from him to her, and she felt fly behind her left shoulder where she had been stabbed. The sword fell out of her skin, and a black wing flapped into view, becoming part of her.

The audience gasped. They whispered and commented in dubiety of the unfinished angels before them.

She rose slowly. Her green eyes had become sharp, and she stared dully at the man before her.

"What the hell?" Shadow said in a fury.

"She's releasing her powers of Jenova." Cloud said. "She's turning to darkness."

"We have to stop him!" Sonic yelled.

"It may be too late now." Cloud said. "She's taken in a lot of information, she must be confused with all of it."

"Damn her." Kega said, disappointed.

"Hey." The group looked up to see Naruto treading harshly down the steps to them.

"Naruto." Sakura said in wonderment. "What are you doing here?"

"I just came to make sure you all still cheering Ezi on."

"Huh? What's it to you, little weirdo?" Rouge snapped defensively.

"I don't know what that creep is telling her, or even what's going on, but you can tell from this whole fight she's been working really hard to get here, so she could help all of you! You better not be doubting her for any reason at all!"

"Mr. Naruto is sort of right." Cream admitted.

"None of us thought she could do it." Knuckles added.

Kega turned her eyes on them for a moment, pondering. "I had to teach her how to use her powers, but most of her ideas and strategies and abilities she learned, were from all of you."

There was a short silence among the friends.

Sonic inhaled. "COME ON, EZI!" Everyone across the arena could probably hear him. "I WAS WORRIED FOR YOUR SAFETY BEFORE, WHICH IS WHY I WAS SCARED FOR YOU TO FIGHT! BUT NOW I KNOW YOU CAN DO IT! YOU'VE CHANGED AND GROWN UP SO MUCH! DON'T LET HIS GUY GET TO YOU!"

It wasn't often Sonic said so many things, and so loudly too, but it sparked everyone else around him as well. Suddenly, they were all yelling out chants and cheers to her at once, and she could hear all of them. Some of the rest of the crowd roared for her victory as well, and she felt warm.

She wasn't alone. She could defeat him.

She took a step towards him, he was not afraid and did not move.

"You're wrong. You're trying to tell me the world is a dark and cruel place? It's only dark and cruel because of people like you!"

"Then I guess if you wish to protect such a place, you can die with it too." Sephiroth pointed his sword at her again. She was gone in a flash, using curaga to at least ease the wound in her left side so she could move better with it. She reappeared across the arena directly in the line behind him.

She flipped in the air. Transcending into the sun; the shimmering element crossed through her wing, and when she landed again and whipped it straight, the feathers were no longer black, but white. The sun's rays shone straight through, causing a phenomenal glow.

This was it.

They were no longer on the ground. Their explicit swordplay was in the sky, cutting through sound and air. They twirled and flipped over each other as if they were standing on the air itself. Their strokes were harsh and fatally violent, but the fast clash of their swords created some kind of light that sparked soft pastel colors, which sang into the air like a harp.

"Wow, that's amazing!" Ino declared.

"I've never seen anything fight like that before." Shikamaru said worriedly. _And with all their talk about destroying worlds… what is the deal with this Sun village?_

"Magnificent swordsmanship." The Hokage's voice was calm with astonishment. The Kazekage gripped the ends of his armchair tightly, trying to keep his composure. How exciting these "shinobi" from the village hidden in the Sun were to him, particularly.

Cloud couldn't help but feel ashamed. He recognized this type of battle as his own, grappling against the darkness. He could have easily been the one to face Sephiroth and defeat him, but his obsession and fear in the matter had worn him down. Now, it was up to another.

Sephiroth soared higher into the air, at the eye level of everyone in the crowd. He whisked his wrist above his head, and with that slight the sky swirled into grey clouds above him.

"No way, is he changing the weather?" Sakura wondered.

"No, that's impossible!" Ino retorted. "Its just a coincidence."

Ezi flew towards him, and he knocked her back. She landed on the balcony gracefully in front of the crowd. They gasped quietly as the two opponents made three hard swings in their proximity, and Sephiroth's Masamune swung just above their heads. The people ducked and made a few loud, short screams. Ezi leapt forward in an attempt to push him off the balcony, away from the spectators. He would be the one to care less if civilians were in his way.

They dived down with their swords intertwined, and before they crashed she flipped away, sliding into the ground and looking towards the ominous clouds. Rocks were raining from the swirling vortex of wisp, and they were coming down on the arena.

Cloud poked his head out from the balcony to see overhead, passed the purple roof. He jumped back in.

"I'll be right back." He said, dashing up the stairs. He saw the man in the mask standing by the doorway to exit out. He wondered for a moment who the mysterious cloaked person was, examining the fight, but it flashed by his thoughts, because he had other things to attend to.

Sephiroth wanted to destroy it all, without anyone else noticing. The comets were coming down fast, but no one was looking up to see them high in the clouds. Ezi could see something black flying upward towards them, with blonde spikey hair, from outside the arena.

"Don't get distracted." Sephiroth mocked, appearing before her instantly. She blocked his swing, and then she jumped back.

"The last remnants of Jenova had to fall to a emotional human like you? Pathetic. You and Cloud are both traitors."

With his red wing for support, Cloud was in the sky. No one had noticed the meteors falling down until he started slashing through them. Some zipped by him too quickly, and they were headed for the arena. The audience that were able to poked their heads up over the balconies to see the sparks coming down. There was a short panic, but the rocks landed swiftly and precisely into the ground, surrounding Sephiroth. Cloud retreated back towards the earth, realizing he could not interfere anymore.

"He summoned those from the sky?" The Hokage seemed to be asking Sora.

"Uh, yeah. Sephiroth is very powerful and dangerous."

Sephiroth remained afloat, a few feet from the ground. He was glowing white and the meteors began to spin around him in different directions. Ezi had to move and roll and dodge them as they hurtled towards her in their circular motion, growing faster every second.

"Grivaga!" She tried using the black force on him, but the power pushed down into the ground; he remained.

"Regular magic won't work on Sephiroth at this point!" Sora called down.

"Damn it, this guy is a pain." Growled Inuyasha. Ezi jumped into the air, avoiding the meteors. She directed her hand to him, and a laser of red fire poured from it, directing at Sephiroth.

"That's the ancient seal!" Knuckles recognized.

"What was that, Knuckles?" Naruto asked.

"It's an old magic my ancestors harbored from the Master Emerald. It's a long story, but Ezi got some of that when she went to my village a few years back."

"She reopened the seal using her black chaos emerald." Kega explained. "That's the reason she is able to use that destructive attack now."

Sephiroth was zapped with the burning light. He cringed forward and dropped to the ground, and the meteors fell as well. The laser singed through his right abdomen, arm and wing. He grunted at the second degree burns that were bubbling on his flesh, and his black wing danced with fire.

"She got him!" Sakura said excitedly. The crowd watched as he floated into the air, gripping his burnt side with his left arm and his head lowered.

"You're not getting away!" Ezi snarled. She flew towards him, and a black being cut in between them, with yellow eyes. She gasped and lunged back, seeing the full body of the giant heartless that had appeared before her. It's face was mangled in some dark wrap, and it had stringy extensions like hair on its head. It had long arms and short legs, and there was an entire hole in its broad chest shaped like a heart.

"A Darkside!" Sora exclaimed the name of the type of Heartless. Sephiroth encased himself in a black orb, and more tiny shadow Heartless swarmed around the Darkside's large legs.

"That bastard! He must be using the Heartless to distract her while he heals inside of that thing." Inuyasha cursed. "That's something that Naraku would do."

"Come on, Ezi! Get to him before he heals completely!" Sango cried out.

It was a hundred against Ezi. She swept up and down through the crowd of heartless, slicing through them as much as possible. The Darkside rained down black spots that burned slightly into Ezi's skin when it made contact. She saw more Heartless appearing and she became angry.

"There's so many of those things." Temari sounded worried. "What the hell are they?"

"They're not out of control, they just seem to be used for the match." Kankuro assured, whispering closely to her. "Don't worry about it. Their abilities seem hostile but they haven't tried anything that would ruin our plan so far."

"Hey, isn't using outside help technically cheating?" Shikamaru turned to Genma.

"Actually, no, not if it's from a summoning and its being used as a weapon, which it seems those things are." Genma was actually thinking that he couldn't just stop the match simply because he was confused by their abilities either.

Ezi flipped over the enemies, and charged through them again. She was running low on energy, and she wanted to injure Sephiroth more before he could heal. She raised her palm out again and used the laser, cutting through the hoard of Heartless again and then up into Sephiroth's orb.

"Fool, she used it twice." Kega said, griping her folded arms tightly. "She just wasted too much energy."

She was breathing heavily when the orb disappeared. She scanned the air around her, but Sephiroth was out of sight. The Darkside had been hit, and it collapsed sideways like a heavy tree. The few heartless that remained were crawling and hopping towards her, trying to escape from being crushed by the Darkside.

"What?" She looked down at her feet. Heartless had poured out from her own shadow on the ground, and had grabbed her feet. "I'm stuck-!"

Everything went white. There was a loud ringing in her ears as she felt the presence behind her, but it was too late.

Cloud had marched back into the crowd, in enough time to see the memory of Aeries; the beautiful Ancient in her pink dress and long chestnut hair, kneeling down to pray, surrounded by a green and white forest.

And there was Sephiroth, reigning down on her from behind in the darkness, both of his hands above his head, holding his long sword down and outward to strike.

He stabbed her, right in the back. The long sword protruding from her left side didn't seem real at first, just a thin silver light that appeared, but then the flashback was over.

Ezi was the one that had been stabbed.

There was a scream, probably Amy's. Everyone else was too shocked in that moment to say anything, Ezi included.

Her eyes were still open, so maybe she was still alive.

The Heartless disappeared like mush in the wind, and Sephiroth was standing there triumphantly behind her.

"Your friends… will suffer the same fate." He said peacefully to her, and yanked the sword out.

She expected her blood to come flying from her mouth, or at least for the pain to be something unbearable, but nothing happened.

Time froze. Maybe she was seeing her parent's ghosts, or maybe she was having flashes of the loved ones who had died, like Luke or Simon.

"There you are," they said, "come join us in the light."

She didn't take time to look at the hole in her side; she had to figure something out fast, before the shock faded and her body shut down. She pressed the button of the device on her belt. The digivice.

She and the creature she summoned disappeared. They teleported to a floor in front of the balcony. She was with a yellow fox woman. Renamon.

"H-hey…" Ezi looked up at her weakly, still kneeling down, holding the wound. It wasn't bleeding out as much as she had expected.

"What are your requirements of me?" The fox said robotically.

"Sorry… I know you belong to another partner, but I need your help again. You and Calumon have done so much for me already, but all worlds are in danger now, including yours… will you join me, please?" Ezi stretched her other arm out desperately.

"Hmph. You saved my partner's life. I owe you more then you realize." Renamon looked down at Sephiroth, who was watching them curiously from below.

"Let's destroy that madman, together." Renamon grabbed her hand, and yanked her sideways into the open air. Ezi spread her wing out and Renamon hopped behind her.

 _Biomerge, Digivolution._

A light cascaded around them, harming the eyes of anyone who looked directly. They were surrounded by an egg of evolution, merging their two spirits together. When the egg vanished, a woman flipped magnificently into the air, landing and spinning gracefully on the ground. She had long grey hair parted in two fox-like tails, and she had black thin body with golden armor plated on her bosom and shoulders. She had long purple gloves on and long purple boots, and the helmet covering around her ears and nose and eyes was the shape of a fox, and she held a monk-like staff with rings on the top of it.

The crowd speculated the woman with excellent inquiry, wondering if she were some angel or celestial being that had appeared from the sakura trees.

"Its Sakuyamon!" Sonic declared, feeling nostalgic. "Ezi merged with the Digimon to become a different mega being all together!"

"She must have done it so the wound in her stomach would disappear." Kega said, smirking. "Now that she has another being to rely on, she practically has a new body now."

"Smart move." Shadow complemented.

Sephiroth darted forward and swung his sword. Sakuyamon blocked it with her staff, and he bounced back by some invisible force.

 _"Sephiroth, your treachery and destructive ways end here."_ Sakuyamon's voice sounded justified, like there were two firm voices talking at once from her soft lips.

"You're the one who will end here, traitor."

The meteor's appeared again, and he threw the heavy rocks from around him all at once to crush her.

"Crystal Sphere!" A blue, truncated icosahedron surrounded her, and the meteors shattered like glass against it.

"Fox Drive!" Sakuyamon stabbed her staff into the earth, and four fox spirits poured out from it. They preyed on Sephiroth in an instant. He knelt down, trying to cast them away, but they soared through him, taking away his life force and energy with every sweep.

Sakuyamon was on him in seconds. "Flaming Fox!" The kick that was whammed into his cheek could have ripped his skin off. Sephiroth went flying with the green flames from the powerful attack, and he rolled violently into the ground, scrapes and bruises formed across his face and exposed skin.

" _Thunder kick_!" The grey sky casted lightning, and it pierced down directly on Sephiroth as she whacked her boot into him again, directly in his chest.

"No way! A regular human would be dead by now!" Wailed Tails.

"She slowed him down using those fox spirits, and now she's throwing all the stunts on him." Sora said excitedly.

"Come on, Ezi, wipe him out!" Inuyasha declared.

Left and right, she was throwing brutal punches and whacks from her staff and kicks at him.

" _Twin Blades_!" The staff protruded two pink rings that sliced through his arms and chest, and blood began ripping out of him like stuffing. It was a violent scene, but there was an excitement among the friends that were watching the devil get beat to a pulp.

She whacked him one more time and he went rolling. He was struggling to stand up but he managed to, yelling out in frustration with his sword towards her.

" _Talisman Sphere!"_ She raised her staff up and threw it down into the ground, creating a circular pattern of green light at their feet.

Sephiroth was frozen in place, unable to move like a statue, captured in the circle attack. The ground around them quaked, and then a green sphere exploded around Sakuyamon, blowing Sephiroth back. He cried out in agony, the light tearing through him a little like a real explosion, and that was it.

Dust covered the arena. The crowd waited anxiously to see what would unfold after the clearing of the chaos.

"Did she defeat him? Did she do it?" Shippo asked in the silence.

When the dust cleared, Sephiroth was standing on one leg, huffing and clinging to his chest, his sword lowered in one hand, and his wing was practically shriveled up like paper. Ezi was facing him far ahead, just as exhausted from Digivolving. She was back to her normal self and Renamon was gone. The wound in her side was slightly more closed now, but it remained with the scratches and bruises she had gained from flying through the Heartless before. They were both literally on their last limb.

"You should be dead from that wound." He was referring to the stab in her side.

"I feel like I should be too." She admitted, breathing heavily. "But I think someone out there was looking out for me… probably someone you wronged in the past."

Cloud felt similar in this, though he could not say the dead person's name out loud.

"Your sins are finally coming back to haunt you, Sephiroth!" She stood as straight as she could, leaning on the side opposite of the stab, pointing her crystal sword at him. Sephiroth followed the same notion, pointing his Masamune towards her. They both looked like cowboys, standing in the afternoon sun, preparing to quick draw.

They leaned downward, holding their swords to their sides, with one leg out, then they charged for one another.

It felt slow and quick all at once, she felt some sorrowful connection to the man she was about to strike, despite all of his evil.

He still had made the choice to read to her. Her beautiful, silver angel.

They had moved so fast in their sword sweeping, no one saw who had cut through who once their paths had crossed. They both stood still after running passed each other, for what felt like eternity. Ezi could feel some light singing in her head, or maybe it was out somewhere in another world and she was happening to hear it. It reminded her of when she met Sonic, or when she traveled to other worlds with Sora, or when she learned how to fight demons with Inuyasha, or…

 _So many sweet memories._

Maybe they were all coming to an end, maybe that's why she felt so much bliss.

She felt a pain surging on the other side of her. He had successfully sliced into her other side, but not enough for it to gush blood. Still, she fell to her knees, and some of her blood cut into the air in the direction his sword had cut through from.

"No, Ezi!" Amy cried out.

"He got her…" Knuckles said hopelessly.

Sephiroth turned his head to look at her.

"Goodbye, little girl."

Then, something rather odd happened.

Sephiroth fell apart.

He had been sliced in two from his waist. An uncontrollable amount of blood poured out as he fell to the ground. The crowd gasped and gawked in horror.

Sephiroth was looking into the hot sun that peeked through the grey clouds. His body was sprawled out on the ground. It almost looked normal, like he was just tired and taking a nap, he looked so peaceful; but there was a thin gap between his waist and lower abdomen.

He tried to keep his eyes open as he listened to footsteps approach. Ezi hovered over him, covering him with her shadow, a sober look on her face, like she was about to cry. Maybe, her face just read pity.

"Goodbye, Sephiroth." She said gently to him. She wasn't sure, but maybe he smiled a little as he began to disappear into a green spray of light that dispersed into the sky. The lights soared up faster, the higher they went, but when they reached the clouds, its as if some invisible force blocked them from going further up. The lights cascaded around the invisible, spherical force, making it visible.

"What is that light surrounding the sky?" Sora and anyone else that could see it looked up.

"It looks like a barrier…" Inuyasha had hope for this symbol. The lights sparkled and the orb shattered into dust. The clouds were gone and the sky was a clear blue day again.

"It was the barrier; the seal! She broke it! I mean, Sephiroth must have cursed us here, and she just broke the barrier!"

"We can go…!" Sora covered his mouth, trying not to reveal to anyone nearby what he was saying.

 _We can go home._

Genma hopped down and stood across from Ezi, glaring down at the puddle of blood that belonged to Sephiroth.

"Since her opponent was defeated, the winner is Ezi Leon."

There was only a second of silence, then the entire arena shook with a wild applause. Ezi was almost surprised so many people were cheering excitedly for her victory; perhaps they understood what was at stake somehow.

She had won. She had not taken a moment to realize this just yet.

Her friends. She could hear them whistling and cheering ecstatically. Maybe Knuckles was punching his fists together, maybe Cream, Kagome and Amy were crying with joy that she was okay, and maybe Sonic was silently congratulating her with a confident nod.

Her vision was blurry.

"Finally… I did it everyone…"

Since the match had been called, she felt she had permission to finally rest. She fell backwards, harshly falling onto the ground, and completely, totally, blacked out.


	24. Scroll 15: We should Totally Stab Cesar!

Scroll 15: We Should Totally Stab Cesar

"Oh no, Ezi!" Her friends stood up and stopped cheering, and watched as the white medical ninja rushed to the scene. They put her on the stretcher and rushed her out.

"Ah, oh no!" Sora rose from his Harekage chair, and watched them run out of the arena.

"What an impressive fight." The Hokage said. "I hope she will be alright."

"Ah, Hokage sir!" Sora stammered. "I would like to go to the medical unit to check on her, to make sure she is alright!"

"You don't have to ask me twice." The Hokage said kindly.

"Thank you sir." Sora bowed slightly to him. "Oh, Inuyasha, come with me."

"Of course; I'm your bodyguard, I have to go!" He insisted.

They were both acting, but they were also probably thinking the same thing: When Sephiroth had been defeated, the barrier around the planet had broken. Their ships would work. They could leave the ninja world and go home to their own worlds and time!

"Hokage, my sun villagers have told me all about your generosity to them upon entering the exams. Thank you for everything!"

"Alright, no need to be so polite. Go; your people need your support right now."

"Yes!" Sora and Inuyasha rushed away from the kage seats, certain they would not be returning.

Sonic and the others scrambled on what to do next as well.

"We have to go see her!" Amy leapt with joy, but also concern. "Bye, Sakura!"

"Oh, bye." Sakura waved in wariness. She did not understand it would be the last time they saw each other, but she accepted Amy's tight hug before she scrambled up the stairs.

"Thanks for letting me help out in the shop!" Kagome said to Ino.

"Awe, I guess after the exams you guys are going back to your village huh?"

Kega had suddenly disappeared, and everyone assumed she returned to earth.

The friends from scattered worlds afar scrambled from their seats and rushed up the stairs towards the exit, with their plans being set in motion.

"Hey, Sonic, wait!" Naruto followed him up the stairs, and the hedgehog turned to him.

"Oh, right. I gotta go check on Ezi."

"Is that all you guys are doing?" Naruto asked, suspiciously.

Sonic, feeling somber, shook his head.

"You guys are going back to your world then, huh?"

"Ezi defeated him, and we think the curse broke, so we can go home."

"Man, I meet some cool people and you guys are gonna disappear now?" Naruto sounded insincere; probably to hide the fact he was really upset.

Sonic gave him one final thumb up. "You have been great, inmate. You taught me some of the way of the ninja. Now, go fight Sasuke in the final rounds."

Naruto nodded confidently. "See you around!" Naruto dashed back down the stairs, and decided to take the short cut by jumping down to the arena to watch Sasuke's match at the contenders' balcony; if Sasuke ever showed up, that is.

.

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~…~

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.

The room was light. If anything, she felt cold, but there was a warm tingle of accomplishment that shivered throughout her body as she lay in the medical bed.

She had won.

She had defeated Sephiroth.

In her timeline, a year ago that would have been impossible. She had traveled back and forth to many worlds, to train and slow down time, so she could become a great fighter for just the right moment.

A sensation burned within her as she lay in the comfortable bed. She was wrapped in itchy bandages around her torso and limbs, and she felt extremely soar. Her wing must have vanished when her power had been depleted after the fight.

She may have been in and out of consciousness after all. She closed her eyes for a few moments again and then opened to find two figures looming over her. As her eyes adjusted to the familiar shapes and color, and smiled.

"Sonic," She whispered.

"How yah doin', champion?" He asked with a wide smile.

"I hurt all over. I feel like I never have to exercise again." She winced by the suddenly sharp pain that she felt in the wound on her side.

"You did good, kid." Shadow admitted.

"We've come to take you back to the ship with us."

"The Blue Typhoon? Already? Where is everybody else?"

"They're already there." Sonic explained. "When they found out you were going to be okay, they rushed over there. They're gonna give you a warm welcome on the Blue Typhoon, since we're in a hurry."

"We are?"

"We don't know how long this barrier will be broken." Shadow explained. "It's likely it is broken for good since you defeated Sephiroth, but we've been here too long as it is. We have to get going."

Ezi pouted her lip. "I know you're right, but I kinda wanted to see Sasuke fight Gaara."

"Me too." Shadow said. "But, we can't risk it. The ninja doctors said you would be fine as long as you didn't reopen your wounds."

"You can heal in the ship on the way back home!" Sonic said delightedly.

Home.

It was like a blissful dream after a long harsh battle.

Their journey in the ninja world was finally over.

.

.

.

As they hopped through the trees, Shadow and Sonic were on either side of Ezi, and she was using them as support to stand. Actually, they did most of the hopping while they did the dragging. It was sore, but the breeze and rush through the air felt good. She felt wistful for a moment, recalling their times of training and all they had accomplished in the exams, as well as creating new friends in the ninja world. It was bittersweet.

"Hang on Ezi." Sonic assured her. "We're almost there!"

And they were.

But there was also a giant snake with its jaws wide slinging into view before them.

This snake was _huge_.

Everything else happened so fast.

The snake was brown with muddy spots on its scales, and its mouth was open as it chomped towards them.

"Look out!" She could hear Sonic's voice, almost as a ringing in her ears, as they dropped her and split up in order to distract the snake. She was dropped on a thick branch of a tree they had just hopped from, and the landing stung in her ankles. She hit the wood so hard it caused her to fall to her knees, and she tried to find the energy just to stay alert of the snakes. The medical ninja must have given her some medicine, because she definitely felt spiny and dragged with exhaustion.

The snake was wrapped around a tree up ahead, snapping its fangs at Sonic when he jumped off the tree in its view; then it scoped down towards her.

She couldn't move. She couldn't calculate if she was stunned because of the ferocious reptile coming to eat her, or if she was in too much pain from her wounds reopening. There was a red spot on her white bandages that grew each passing second.

The snake's body was in her face, and before she knew it, the coils slammed her into the tree body behind her. Her back slammed against the hollow wood and she made a helpless yelping noise as the snake tightened around it. She was trapped.

"Ezi!" Sonic yelled. He and Shadow landed on the other end of the branch, running towards her to help, but a menacing cackle stopped them in their tracks.

It was coming from above. Ezi looked up to their right to see a pale man with long ebony hair standing on the branch.

 _"So nice to finally meet you, Sonic and Shadow…"_

"Who the heck are you?" Sonic demanded.

Shadow didn't pay any mind; he started skating towards Ezi again.

"Take one more step, and I'll have the snake snap your friend like a little twig." The man said, menacingly. Shadow stopped.

"You're controlling the snake? Who are you?" Sonic demanded.

"I'm sure you've heard of me before…"

"Quit playing around!"

Ezi was dizzy, and probably losing her senses, but for some reason she had a feeling of fear. The yellow eyes of the snake man seemed familiar somehow, even though she nor any of her friends had the awful pleasure of meeting him until now.

"I am Orochimaru. I have been looking forward to meeting you, Sonic."

"If its me you wanna talk to, then let Ezi go! She has nothing to do with this!"

"That may be true…" He had a silky, sinister voice, "but I didn't think you would give me the time of day if I didn't take such actions to get your attention."

"I'll show you the time of day." Shadow grumbled. He lifted up the green Chaos Emerald he was so predisposed to.

"I wouldn't use that if I were you."

The voice that rang out this time sounded familiar. Orochimaru was looking behind him, and his eyes followed the young man that appeared next to him.

Ezi's eyes were dazzled by his presence at first.

"Kabu…to?" Then, she felt worse then before. Why was Kabuto smirking, and standing beside a malicious traitor of the Hidden Leaf village?

"Kabuto?" Sonic noticed as well. "Good! Cut Ezi loose and we'll take care of the snake charmer over there!"

"I'm afraid I can't do that."

"Why not?" Shadow demanded, but he already knew the answer.

"I would listen to _Lord_ Orochimaru, if I were you." Kabuto threatened.

Her heart dropped to her stomach. "Lord?"

"So sorry Ezi-chan; sorry that things had to turn out this way." Kabuto was taunting her.

"No you're not." Shadow sneered.

"Kabuto, what's going on?" Sonic snapped.

Shadow scoffed, dumbfounded. "You mean you haven't figured it out yet? Look; he's a spy."

"A… spy?" Ezi choked.

"That's right. I'm a spy for the village hidden in the sound. I have been tracking ninja all over for Orochimaru to recruit. I hit the jackpot when I befriended all of you, however."

"You were the man in purple that attacked Sasuke in the hospital." Shadow stated. "You only visited us at our ship because you were not allowed in the village."

 _No._

"You spied on us to get info for that creepy snake guy?" Sonic recounted, pointing at Orochimaru.

The man chuckled. "Indeed, and Kabuto gave me some juicy information about all of you, world travelers."

"My lord was particularly interested in your powers, Sonic and Shadow. Your agility, and your speed and wind and light powers are quite fascinating. I wonder if you would willingly come with us so my lord could run a few tests on you?"

"As if! They were right about you being vile!" Sonic accused, pointing at Orochimaru. "Let Ezi go and fight us like a real man!"

"I do not wish to fight though." Orochimaru said softly. "But, I know you won't come willingly either."

He snapped his fingers. The snake immediately tightened its body around the tree, causing Ezi to cry out. Blood from her wounds trickled down her leg.

She squeezed her eyes shut. "I can't believe this! You tricked us? Why did you pretend to be our friend?"

"Aw, did I hurt your feelings, little Ezi-chan?"

She could practically feel his shadow upon her helpless form. He was standing in front of her now, and he raised her chin up to look at him. He still looked like Kabuto, but there was a malicious glint in his features now.

Monstrous.

"I had to get information on all of you before my lord could pursue you. But, I pursued you particularly on my own."

"W…why?" She felt pathetic for all the whimpering and stammering she was doing. Had she not been a superior being just an hour ago, defeating the One Winged Angel?

"Because, you were so damn easy to trick." He rubbed her cheek gently, a gesture she may have not minded before this moment.

"You were like a student wet for her teacher, so you gave me all the information I needed so easily. Thank you, Ezi-chan; I really couldn't have done it without you."

…

She wanted to _kill_ him.

No.

She wanted to beat him to a bloody pulp until he was crying, then kill him.

" **You, BASTARD!"** She tried to get closer to him, but the snake had her trapped.

"You know, Sonic," Kabuto turned around to face the hedgehogs now, "I could always take Ezi with me if you're not interested. Her abilities are also quite interesting. I suppose in the end it's your choice."

"You damn bastards." Shadow said darkly.

"We don't usually like to resort to these measures, but we're out of time." Kabuto shrugged, like none of this was a big deal. "Come with us, or we'll have to get violent."

It was all awful, and probably for the first time in the ninja world, feeling so tired and hopeless, Ezi was crying.

"Sonic… go! Don't let Orochimaru get your pow-!" She screamed out. The snake was getting tighter, and she could feel her chest burning.

"No!" Sonic cried out.

"Tick-tock, little hedgehogs…" Orochimaru said mockingly.

That was the last of her energy. After working so hard, she was damsel in distress again. But, she couldn't let her friends be taken away by these monsters…

Her blood boiled, and a dark energy rose, but before she could do anything logical, she blacked out again.

…They had been so close to getting home. Things were supposed to be getting back to normal. Sonic would prance around in Greenhill, chasing robots and foiling Eggman's evil schemes again. The Saturday morning cartoon style of fights and adventures, back when they were all a bit younger and bit more naïve.

Now, they were all older and wiser. Things would never be the same again.

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 **THE END!**

Yeah the first part of Sonic/Naruto crossover is OVER!

I titled the story this I don't know why, probably because I thought of that line from Mean Girls in the event of treachery. Oh, the dramatic irony! The story will continue in the Tsunade Arc! I will probably publish that one, maybe. If I have time.

Thank you all for your reviews! They were very appreciated and were awesome. I hope you enjoyed this as much as I enjoyed writing it! Have a great life!


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